90-year-old driver lost control of vehicle, took out one of two remaining cyclist sculptures
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. It was the second time someone failed to negotiate the roundabout within two months. Durango Police Department officer Nathan Scott issues a citation while the driver sits in the vehicle. (Shane Benjamin/Durango Herald)
A 90-year-old man driving west on Florida Road crashed a Lincoln MKC through the roundabout near Chapman Hill and damaged a cyclist statue Saturday morning – one of only two remaining after a nearly identical crash destroyed three of the five steel cyclists in March.
Saturday’s crash was called in to the Durango Police Department at 11:26 a.m., said DPD spokesperson Amanda Garrison. The driver hit a curb and lost control of his vehicle, she said, sending the car into the middle of the roundabout. The vehicle came to rest facing Discount Liquors.
Nathan Scott, the responding officer at the scene, who issued the driver a citation for careless driving, said he also responded to the first incident. Garrison said authorities found no evidence that the driver was impaired, and he suffered no injuries.
The driver who damaged three of the steel cyclists in March – Sonya Dees, 38, of Durango – was arrested on suspicion of impaired driving after the crash, according to authorities.
The five, 800-pound cyclist sculptures were created by Boulder artist Joshua Wiener and installed in August 2012 to commemorate the USA Pro Cycling Challenge.
Wiener did not immediately respond to a request for comment Saturday.
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. It was the second time someone failed to negotiate the roundabout within two months. Durango Police Department officer Nathan Scott directs traffic as a tow truck pulls the vehicle off the center of the roundabout. (Elizabeth Pond/Durango Herald)
The car was towed off the center of the roundabout about 12:15 p.m.
Passing drivers, cyclists and pedestrians laughed, shook their heads and called out, “again?” as authorities and a towing company worked on removing the car.
“I’m like, ‘Dang, it already happened once,’” said a resident who lives near the crash site as she looked on at the damaged sculptures. “(I feel bad for) that poor guy who made them.”
City spokesman Tom Sluis said the city does not currently have plans to change anything structurally about the roundabout or the sculpture in response to the two crashes, but that feedback from residents is welcome.
“If residents would like to see some type of structural changes related to that sculpture implemented, we would love to hear from them,” he said.
epond@durangoherald.com
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. The crash left only one of the original five sculptures intact. (Elizabeth Pond/Durango Herald)
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. (Elizabeth Pond/Durango Herald)
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. (Shane Benjamin/Durango Herald)
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. It was the second time someone failed to negotiate the roundabout within two months. Durango Police Department officer Nathan Scott issues a citation while the driver sits in the vehicle. (Shane Benjamin/Durango Herald)
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. It was the second time someone failed to negotiate the roundabout within two months. (Shane Benjamin/Durango Herald)
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday afternoon in Durango. It was the second time someone failed to negotiate the roundabout within two months. (Shane Benjamin/Durango Herald)
The driver of a black Lincoln SUV crashed through the Florida Road roundabout and smashed into one of the two remaining Endurance bicycle sculptures Saturday in Durango. (Shane Benjamin/Durango Herald)
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