California van passenger impaled by tripod on freeway
A stolen tripod from a California Department of Transportation crew was dropped from an overpass onto a Sacramento freeway on Thursday, May 16, 2019. The tripod impaled the lung of a van passenger. (Tim Page/El Dorado Veterans Resources Transportation/Military Family Support Group via AP)
A stolen tripod from a California Department of Transportation crew was dropped from an overpass onto a Sacramento freeway on Thursday, May 16, 2019. The tripod impaled the lung of a van passenger. (Tim Page/El Dorado Veterans Resources Transportation/Military Family Support Group via AP)
Updated May 18, 2019 - 10:11 pm
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Authorities say somebody stole a tripod from a California Department of Transportation crew and then dropped it from an overpass onto a Sacramento freeway, impaling the lung of a passenger in a van.
The driver of the van, Tim Page, tells KCRA-TV that he was on Interstate 5 on Thursday morning when the yellow-and-red tripod smashed through the glass. He says it went through his passenger’s lung and popped out.
The man survived but with broken ribs and a partially punctured lung.
Authorities say a 32-year-old man they suspect threw the tripod was arrested on a warrant but may face a charge of attempted murder.
Page volunteers with El Dorado Veteran Resources and had picked up his passenger, another veteran, from the airport.
