A dump truck driver put motorists in an Arizona town in danger Thursday by piling what appeared to be lawn equipment in the back of his truck without securing the load.
The incident happened on August 23rd in Ahwatukee, Arizona.
According to ABC 15 Arizona, the dump truck was initially sited splitting a stop light by striking it with its dangerous, unsecured load, strewing debris across the roadway. Eventually, the dump truck struck a stop sign at 48th Street and Broadway Road, pulling a large lawnmower from the bed of the truck and causing it to fall into the roadway.
“When I got out here I just saw a big metal tractor tipped over in the middle of the street! I was like what the h*** is that,” said Keng Booh who lives nearby the scene of the incident.
“It was piled high with tractors, and it looked like equipment,” said Stephanie Conley, a woman who was able to capture a video of the truck.
NEW: Dump truck caught driving miles with unsecured load around #Phoenix: https://t.co/zFgKTOefZA #abc15 #SafeRoads pic.twitter.com/rH95Y8eVla
— ABC15 Arizona (@abc15) August 24, 2018
Apparently, the dump truck driver never even hit the brakes after dropping the equipment and just keep on going, leaving the lawnmower and other debris lying in the roadway.
“It could’ve fallen over on somebody’s car or on a person or anything. Someone could’ve gotten seriously hurt,” said Booh.
Phoenix Police have not disclosed whether or not they are investigating the incident, but witnesses say that they believe the equipment came from a recently shut down golf course, Club West.
“It was kind of sketchy if it was being moved legitimately or someone just came out there and took the equipment,” said Conley.
The dropped lawn mower was left in the roadway for several hours before it was moved into the parking lot of a nearby gas station. A few hours later, an unknown man retrieved it from the parking lot. It is not known if he was the same driver who dropped it initially.