A truck driver is facing numerous charges after he allegedly crashed into a utility pole Friday morning, sparking a fire at a Schuylkill County business.
State Police say the driver then left the scene to replace a damaged tire.
Brent Keiper, 56, of Bartonsville, Monroe County, spent the weekend in Schuylkill County Prison and is facing allegations stemming from the Feb. 6 incident in Cressona.
Police say they were dispatched to the area of McGovern Welding & Machine Shop on Pottsville St. in Cressona at about 10:30 a.m. Friday for a report of a crash that caused a business to catch fire.
At the scene, police say they saw smoke billowing from the building and a utility pole broken from the ground.
Two people – the business owner and his daughter – were inside the building at the time of the crash. The owner reportedly told police he heard a loud bang and immediately lost power.
Shortly after, he observed smoke inside the building. He went outside and saw the crashed pole, but told police there was no vehicle in the area.
Fire crews responded to fight the fire, and utility crews were called to the scene to handle power lines hanging as a result of the crash.
Police say they canvassed the area and spoke to a worker at nearby Ken’s Tire. The worker told police a man had walked into the business and stated he had hit a telephone pole up the road.
The worker was unsure where the driver went after making the statement.
At about 11:30 a.m., roughly an hour after the crash, police located the commercial vehicle they say was driven by Keiper, behind the tire shop. Police say Keiper was in the process of replacing the front driver’s side tire when they first saw him.
Keiper’s commercial truck had disabling damage consistent with striking a utility pole, police say.
When questioned by police, Keiper allegedly admitted he was the operator of the commercial vehicle that struck the pole. Police say Keiper stated he left the scene to get his truck off the roadway but never returned.
Keiper reportedly told investigators he contacted his boss to report the crash but never contacted a police department. He alleged his boss said he would contact police but was unsure of the jurisdiction.
Keiper was taken into custody and arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Christian Lengel on Friday afternoon. Police charged him with a felony count of risking a catastrophe as well as misdemeanor counts of reckless endangerment and accidents involving damage to property. He was also charged with several traffic violations, including speeding, driving without a CDL, and failing to give information at the scene of a crash.
Lengel set bail at 10% of $10,000 and remanded Keiper to Schuylkill County Prison. Court records show that cash bail was posted on Monday. A preliminary hearing before Senior Magisterial District Judge Casimir Kosciolek in Orwigsburg is scheduled for April 7.
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