Hit and Run reported at Kennebec Station

      Halvorson Oil employee Royalee Metz arrived at work early last Thursday morning and immediately noticed things were out of place. “There were black marks on the concrete, the gas hose from the east pump was on the ground and the railroad ties were pulled out,” said Metz.

      She notified owner Curt Halvorson and Sheriff Manger as it appeared a vehicle had hit the pump. The vehicle, a semi truck with a grain trailer and pup, had pulled into the station’s east driveway and tried to pass the building on the east side but hit the pump, backed up and hooked the railroad ties along the ditch and then proceeded north passing by two more pumps before pulling on to Highway 16 and proceeding west.

      Sheriff Manger followed black marks on the highway to Presho where he located the truck and driver parked behind Hutch’s Cafe. South Dakota HP assisted Manger at the site. The driver, Kevin Allum 55 of Woonsocket, was employed by Ruan Transport and was operating a Wheat Growers leased truck. He was arrested for commercial DUI and failure to report an accident. Apparently, the brakes on the pup trailer were damaged when the trailer hit the railroad ties and were locked up.

      By the time the truck reached Presho, the trailer was running on the rims. Judy Busch of Halvorson Oil stated Monday that they didn’t have a dollar amount on the damages but she knew that a new blender pump would cost about $25,000. While no fuel was spilled during the incident, the pump was knocked off it’s base and has been out-of-order since Thursday.