JAMESTOWN, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – A Texas man is facing numerous charges after a DUI crash early Sunday morning in Jamestown.
Jamestown Police report that just before 3 AM, they were dispatched to the 100 block of Business Loop West on a report of multiple 911 calls of a motor vehicle crash with possible injuries to the driver, located on the bridge deck.
“Upon arrival, officers found a vehicle hanging over the side of the bridge deck and the driver was pinned inside,” Major Justin Blinsky says. “The vehicle was being supported by a chain-link fence to keep it from falling into the James River.”
Jamestown Area Ambulance and the Jamestown Fire Department were paged to assist in stabilizing the vehicle, remove the driver from the vehicle, and provide medical aid. The driver was the sole occupant.
Officers began conducting traffic control and the accident investigation. The driver was transported to the Jamestown Regional Medical Center by Jamestown Area Ambulance, for non- life-threatening injuries.
“After speaking with multiple witnesses and reviewing physical evidence at the scene, it was determined the vehicle had been traveling south on 1st Ave, at a high rate of speed,” Major Blinsky said.
The driver was unable to negotiate the right turn onto Business Loop West from 1st Ave S, at the 10th St S. intersection.
The vehicle traveled over the median, across both westbound lanes of travel on the 100 block of Business Loop West, over the bridge median, across both eastbound lanes of travel on the 100 block of Business Loop West and crashed into the cement barricade.
“The vehicle pushed the cement barricade across the pedestrian sidewalk, through the chain-link fence, and off the bridge deck,” Major Blinsky added. “The barricade had been anchored into the cement, but the impact by the vehicle broke the barricade free from its metal anchors. The cement barricade landed along the riverbank.”
The driver was identified as 42-year-old Joseph Terrel Manuel Jr. of Houston, Texas. After receiving medical assistance at JRMC, Joseph was arrested and cited on suspicion of Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, suspicion of Driving while Operators License was Suspended, and suspicion of Driving Without Liability Insurance.
The Jamestown Police Department was assisted by the Stutsman County Sheriff’s Office, North Dakota Highway Patrol, Jamestown Area Ambulance, Jamestown Fire Department, and the Jamestown Street Department.