Salina man arrested after wreck just off I-70 that set grass afire

<b>A grass fire caused by the crash backlights the scene of the single-vehicle wreck along Interstate 70 early Sunday morning. </b>Photo courtesy Saline County Sheriff's Office — **A grass fire caused by the crash backlights the scene of the single-vehicle wreck along Interstate 70 early Sunday morning.** Photo courtesy Saline County Sheriff's Office

By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY
Salina Post

A local man was arrested early Sunday morning after his pickup left the interstate, struck a fence, and set nearby grass on fire northeast of Salina.

Emergency personnel were sent to mile marker 257 on eastbound Interstate 70 at 3:10 a.m. Sunday for the report of a vehicle that had left the roadway. When they arrived, they found a 1998 Chevrolet S10 pickup up against the fence that runs along the interstate, Saline County Sheriff Roger Soldan said this morning. Both the pickup and nearby grass were burning.

<b>Aaron Powers. </b>Photos courtesy Saline County Sheriff's Office — **Aaron Powers.** Photos courtesy Saline County Sheriff's Office

Soldan said the driver, identified as Aaron Powers, 24, of Salina, was eastbound on I-70 when he somehow lost control of the pickup and it went off the roadway. Powers sustained only minor injuries and refused treatment.

An estimate $500 in damage was done to the fence and the grass, Soldan said. The fire burned approximately 50 acres of grassland before it was extinguished by rural fire department personnel.

Powers was arrested on the following requested charges, according to Soldan.

●Driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs

●Not wearing a seatbelt