Sleeping and driving don’t mix well, as was evidenced by the accident that happened about 2:10 on Friday afternoon last week in front of St. Paul’s Lutheran Church.The out of state driver, Daniel Alfaro, Jr., had recently purchased the small, red Kia in Texas and was driving it northbound on Main Street in Bridgeport, headed for North Dakota, when he fell asleep at the wheel, jumped the curb, and plowed the front driver side of the vehicle into the light pole that held the highway signs at the corner of 5th and Main Street.
The pole was sheared off at the base and the driver continued north before stopping near the entrance to the Prairie Winds Community Center. Electrical wire lay on the sidewalk and dangled from the tree in the yard of the church. City of Bridgeport utility workers were quick to remove the downed wire and the pole from the roadway. Debris was scattered over 100 yards in all directions and highway signs were scattered on the roadway.
The Morrill County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene, along with Morrill County advanced life support.While the driver was unrestrained, airbags did deploy, and he subsequently refused medical treatment or transport.
