BRADFORD, Vt. — A driver from Maine significantly damaged a wooden footbridge used by students at Bradford Elementary School when he drove his vehicle onto the bridge last month.
The privately-owned footbridge located in a wooded area at the end of residential Cottage Street, which sustained damage to the floor and railing, goes over Hardy Brook and connects the street to the elementary school.
It is often used by students as well as cyclists and pedestrians, the school’s principal, Edith Fogarty, wrote in a recent message to the school community members. The bridge allows students to commute to school without walking through the more heavily-trafficked North Main Street, which is a short walk away in the center of town.
The bridge is also part of the elementary school’s emergency evacuation route, Oxbow Unified Union School District Board Chairwoman Danielle Corti said. School officials plan to choose a new evacuation route this summer, which will be in place by the start of the school year on Aug. 25, Corti said. She said she doesn’t expect the footbridge to be repaired before the new school year begins.
The bridge is owned by Bradford residents Dayle and Gregory Johnson, according to town land records. Messages left for the Johnsons were not returned by deadline on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the vehicle’s driver, 70-year-old Christopher Shorey, of South Paris, Maine, faces charges of DUI and negligent operation, a Vermont State Police news release said.
Shorey was the only person in the vehicle at the time of the incident, which happened about 3 p.m. on June 25. He attempted to cross the bridge in his vehicle after driving across a wooded footpath at the end of Cottage Street, the release said. The bridge, which was not built for vehicular traffic, was too narrow to accommodate Shorey’s vehicle, a 2018 white Volvo.
Bradford Fire Department emergency responders soon arrived on the scene and assisted Shorey from the car, which was partially hanging off the edge of the bridge.
Shorey showed signs of impairment and made references to drinking, the release said. He did not sustain serious injuries, but Upper Valley Ambulance transported him to Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon for assessment. The front of his Volvo was damaged.
His court date is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Sept. 20 at Orange County Criminal Court, the release said.
Marion Umpleby can be reached at mumpleby@vnews.com or 603-727-3306.
