3 Charged with Drunk Driving, Beltway Closed After Utility Towers Crash: Police

TOWSON, MD — Three people were charged with DUI after they allegedly drove through a section of Interstate 695 Saturday morning where cable towers had fallen, Maryland State Police said. In one case, a suspected drunk driver hit two state police vehicles.

At 12:15 a.m., authorities said they responded to the area of I-695 at York Road and found that two cable suspension towers had come down.

Nobody was injured in the incident, which closed both the inner and outer loops of the Baltimore beltway and the York Road for more than seven hours, according to police.

Ten Verizon cables had fallen the beltway under the York Road overpass, police said. At the scene, 11 vehicles had crashed into the cables and/or other vehicles at the scene, according to officials.

As troopers helped State Highway Administration crews with the road closure, authorities said a Volkswagen hit two Maryland State Police vehicles, and the driver was charged with driving under the influence.

Before I-695 reopened at approximately 7:30 a.m., police said that two more drivers continued through cones and flares at the scene and were charged with DUI.

All together, Maryland State Police reported that its officers arrested 18 impaired drivers across the state overnight.

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