Fire-Rescue News- Atlantic City police say suspected drunken driver hit pole, set marsh on fire

By ELAINE ROSE Staff Writer | Posted: Wednesday, May 5, 2010 | 0 comments

ATLANTIC CITY — Police said they are looking for a suspected drunken driver who fled the scene Tuesday night after he crashed his car into a utility pole on the White Horse Pike, setting off a marsh fire.

The man was driving west on Route 30 at about 9:30 p.m. when he went....Continue Reading

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 off the road at milepost 54.4, just east of the Absecon border, and hit a pole on the front passenger side of the car, said Sgt. Robert Clarke of the traffic unit. The pole broke and the wires ignited the grass in the marsh, and the car went back onto the highway.

“He left the car in the middle of the road and started running” west toward Pleasantville, Clarke said.

The westbound lanes of Route 30 were closed for nearly 20 minutes while the Fire Department put out the fire and cleared the scene, Clarke said. Firefighters searched the nearby marsh for possible victims, but didn’t find anyone.

Alcohol is suspected as a factor in the accident, as officers found a large, and nearly empty, bottle of vodka in the car and a partially filled bottle of a vodka-and-orange-juice mixture, Clarke said.

Anyone who witnessed the accident or has information about the driver is asked to call Officer Steve Cupani at 609-347-5744.

Contact Elaine Rose:  609-272-7215

Posted in BREAKING | ATLANTIC-CITY PLEASANTVILLE BRIGANTINE on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 4:30 am Updated: 6:22 am.