Firefighters take a lot of pride in washing and polishing their vehicles, not wrecking them. But a South Carolina volunteer firefighter has been charged with driving under the influence after he managed to flip his community’s fire truck.
This is the kind of thing usually attributed to Florida man — but it and South Carolina are only a state apart.
The crash happened in tiny Starr, S.C., a crossroads south of Greenville near the Savannah River. Starr’s population is under 200, so this is probably the biggest thing to occur there in years. According to Fox Carolina, the firefighter was responding to a call — although the Associated Press and other South Carolina outlets say that’s unclear. The South Carolina Highway Patrol says there was one other person aboard the fire engine when it ran off the road, hit a culvert and highway sign, and overturned.
A neighbor told WSPA-TV the crash happened on a stretch of road where speeding is a problem, and from the wreckage it looks like speed was a factor.
Troopers say the driver was treated for minor injuries and was jailed. But no other injuries were reported.
The fire truck, however, was totaled. And small towns being what they are, the driver may be a long time living it down.