An apartment building was evacuated in Shasta Lake City on Friday after an alleged drunk driver plowed into it with his pickup truck. The Sheriff’s Office says shortly before 10AM 46-year-old Joshua Benson lost control and his pickup truck and utility trailer smashed through a large window of an unoccupied business space, then into a home at the attached apartment buildings west of the Farmer’s Supermarket off Shasta Dam Boulevard. The crash was initially believed to have broken natural gas lines in the building so the building was evacuated and Shasta Dam Boulevard was shut down. Nobody inside the building suffered injuries but Benson was unconscious and was trapped. He had to be extricated by rescue personnel before being taken away by ambulance. He was cited for DUI at the hospital and released for medical treatment. One of the apartments was rendered uninhabitable and Red Cross was called to assist the tenant and her baby with a place to stay.
-Steve Gibson