A 21-year-old driver who told the De Soto Police she fell asleep at the wheel Monday night (Feb. 2) crashed through a metal fence and struck Union Pacific railroad tracks before coming to a stop, De Soto Police report.
A Union Pacific spokesman said the accident damaged the tracks, but company personnel quickly repaired them enough for use.
The driver, a De Soto resident, was arrested after officers learned she was allegedly driving on a suspended license. She sustained minor injuries, but refused medical treatment, officers reported.
According to police, an officer on patrol at 9:26 p.m. in the area of Main and Boyd streets saw a 1997 Toyota Camry fail to stop for the stop sign on Boyd at Main streets. Then, the Camry struck a light pole, smashed through the metal fence and hit the railroad tracks.
The driver was released pending application for warrants and the Camry was towed from the scene, police said.
Capt. Dan Contarini said his department will seek charges of driving while suspended, operating a vehicle without maintaining financial responsibility and failure to stop at a stop sign against the suspect.
Jacob Lunsford, a Union Pacific track maintenance superviser, said today (Feb. 3) the crash bent the tracks.
“The rail canted – it was leaning to the east – and the crash also knocked the track out of place,” Lunsford said. “It was repaired last night. We started running trains on it around 1 a.m. We’ve been running on the tracks, just a little slower than normal. We’re still working on it. We’ll get back up to snuff where we can run at full speed.”