Trooper escapes injury when squad struck by drunken driver

MANDAN, N.D. – A North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper guarding a road closure gate for Interstate 94 in Mandan avoided injury when his squad car was struck by a drunken driver.

The patrol says incident happened early Sunday morning after the interstate was shut down because of a blizzard.

The trooper was facing eastbound in the westbound lane with his emergency lights activated when a vehicle approached at high speed. The trooper was able to move his car to avoid a head-on collision and was side-swiped by the vehicle, which continued on to strike the road-closure gates.

The vehicle driver, who was not injured, was arrested for driving under the influence.

The case is being investigated by the highway patrol and Morton County.