An Arkansas man crashed into a natural gas control station at the end of a high-speed chase with police, according to a report from the Craighead County sheriff's office.
Deputy Daniel Wiley wrote in the report that he was traveling northbound on Stadium Boulevard in Jonesboro near Rook Road just before 2 a.m. Saturday when he saw an orange Chevrolet Avalanche pull out of a gas station without its lights on.
Wiley followed the vehicle, which reportedly sped up and ran a stop sign near the railroad tracks. The driver, Ragen Reed Ray, 39, continued at about 70 mph, forcing several vehicles to stop at an intersection to avoid being struck, according to the report.
Ray then swerved off of Bittle Street due to the high speed of the vehicle, the deputy said. The vehicle careened into a parking lot and then reportedly crashed into retaining pipes and a natural gas control station near the intersection of Nettleton and Bittle streets, and Ray fled from the car.
Several officers chased Ray on foot, jumping over a chain-link fence and apprehending him when he tripped and fell, the report stated.
The Jonesboro Fire Department responded to the scene while gas leaked from the pipes, the sheriff's office said. The vehicle had to be towed vertically of the gas pipe lines, according to the report.
The gas controls suffered "extensive damage," and an on-call employee for City Water and Light of Jonesboro reportedly estimated that there was at least $1,000 worth of damage to power lines and other structures.
CenterPoint Energy, AT&T and a gas company were notified of the damage, authorities said.
Ray was charged with several misdemeanors, including reckless driving, fleeing in a vehicle, fleeing on foot, driving on a suspended license and expired tags and not having liability insurance.
He was released on a $2,475 bond about four hours after he was booked into the Craighead County jail, records show.
