If Pickup Crashed Into Convention Center Earlier It Could Have Been Tragic
DENVER (CBS4) - A man is under arrest for drunk driving charges after he drove his vehicle into the Colorado Convention Center in downtown Denver Monday night.
The pickup truck smashed through the glass doors and into the lobby where two people received minor injuries from flying glass. The incident occurred when few people were around.
Convention Center employee Darrell Crekmore told CBS4 that it was fortunate it didn't happen earlier.
"Well when we have three different shows going on there would have been 500 people out in that lobby. It could have been bad if it had happened earlier in the day," he said.
Police arrived on the scene and found the driver of the pickup. Randolph John Blazon, 26, appeared to sway, had alcohol on his breath, bloodshot eyes and slurred speech. Denver police spokeswoman Christine Downs says he was arrested for careless driving resulting in injury and DUI.
"When officers arrived on scene last night they saw his behavior and they are trained in the profession in knowing whether people are driving under the influence," Downs said.
She says the pickup was going towards the Convention Center on California Street and failed to make the turn onto 14th Street. It ran over a tree and went through the doors. There are no protective barriers such as those at police headquarters raising the issue of security.
The doors were quickly boarded up and painted. With only a few exceptions convention goers might not have known what had taken place there just a few hours earlier.
Crekmore was one of those working to put the Convention Center back together after the crash. He said they had to work quickly.
"We didn't have any choice, we had to, the show must go on."
The giant blue bear peering in the window was unharmed.
CBS4's Rick Sallinger is a Peabody award winning reporter who has been with the station more than two decades doing hard news and investigative reporting. Follow him on Twitter @ricksallinger.
