Video surveillance from Durango Rapid Wash shows a speeding car narrowly miss a pedestrian before colliding with a tree Tuesday on Main Avenue in Durango.
The crash occurred at 2:40 p.m. in the 2400 block of Main Avenue when a red 2000 Ford Escort traveling north crossed into oncoming traffic and ran up the northbound curb, said Cmdr. Rita Warfield of the Durango Police Department.
The vehicle uprooted a maple tree, rolled and spun 180 degrees, she said. Witnesses said the vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed, she said.
It came feet from hitting a pedestrian standing at 24th Street and Main Avenue, according to a video posted Tuesday night on Facebook by Durango Rapid Wash, 2401 Main Ave.
“It wasn’t until I ran the video that I was like, ‘Holy crap.’ The guy had to be going 55 (mph) I’d guess,” said Craig Arnwine, owner of the car wash. “It could’ve been a lot, lot worse.”
The driver, Daniel Walsh, 64, of California was taken to Mercy Regional Medical Center where he was treated and released.
He was cited with careless driving causing a crash.
“He stated that he fell asleep at the wheel ... and that’s what caused him to accelerate,” Warfield said. “We’re just glad that no one was injured.”
shane@durangoherald.com
