A Durango man has been arrested on suspicion of crashing his pickup into a power pole on Florida Road, knocking out power to about 1,400 electric customers.
The crash occurred about 1:15 p.m. Sunday in the 1500 block of Florida Road, which is near Bread and Huck Finn gas station, where East Animas Road (County Road 250) connects with Florida Road.
Maximilian Ware, 42, was allegedly driving northbound when he drifted off the right side of the road and collided with a 35 mph speed limit sign before hitting the power pole.
Officers arrived to find Ware standing outside his vehicle; he was unharmed but showed signs of intoxication, said Durango police Cmdr. Nick Stasi.
Officers conducted a field sobriety test. They initially suspected intoxication but have since dropped those charges for insufficient evidence, Stasi said. Officers attempted to place Ware under arrest, but he allegedly took off running, Stasi said. He made it only a few steps before he was tackled and handcuffed.
Ware was arrested on suspicion of obstruction of a police officer, careless driving and operating an uninsured motor vehicle.
He also faces charges of being a previous offender in possession of a handgun and prohibited use of a weapon.
Stasi said Ware has a criminal history, but he could not immediately elaborate on his past convictions. A DPD social media post in 2019 said Ware had been arrested on suspicion of felony assault in 2019.
No other passengers were in the vehicle at the time of the crash, he said.
Amanda Anderson, a spokeswoman for La Plata Electric Association, said the power outage took place from about 1:20 to 4:40 p.m. and affected about 1,400 customers.
Crews were working to repair the damage Monday afternoon.
jbowman@durangoherald.com
