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Baker’s Camp Bridge damaged by box truck
BAINBRIDGE — Not only did an Indianapolis man’s driving damage a historic covered bridge Friday morning, his negligence following the incident could have him facing a criminal charge.
Both portals of Baker’s Camp Covered Bridge were damaged when Djuan Z. Self, 31, Indianapolis, attempted to drive a large cargo truck through the bridge.
At 9:22 a.m. Self was traveling eastbound on County Road 650 North approaching the bridge in a 2015 Ford box truck registered to Budget Truck Rental and leased to Meme’s Moving Inc., Indianapolis.
The truck was too big to travel through the covered bridge, yet Self entered the bridge, with the roof of his truck damaging the west end of the structure.
Deputy Brian Helmer reported that Self then attempted to continue through the bridge, with the roof also striking the east end and causing heavy damage.
While the damage to the west end could be classified as relatively minor, the impact at the east end pulled out the entire gable, partially detaching it and causing wood damage down each side of the portal.
Bainbridge Deputy Town Marshal Matt Biggs located the vehicle on County Road 675 North and County Road 600 East, more than 1.5 miles up the road from the bridge. Self and his passenger were looking at the damage to the vehicle upon Biggs’ arrival.
Helmer subsequently spoke with Self, who said he knew he hit the bridge but did not know who to call. The deputy told him that it is common knowledge to notify law enforcement via 911.
Helmer primarily charged Self with Class B misdemeanor leaving the scene of a property damage crash. Formal charges will have to be filed by the Putnam County Prosecutor’s Office.
Damage was estimated at $10,000-$25,000, though it is unclear from police reports the amount of damages to county property.
The mishap comes on the heels of the Putnam County Highway Department fixing the same bridge following a similar incident.
Highway Department Supervisor Mike Ricketts reported the new damage to the Putnam County Commissioners during their first meeting of 2019 on Monday morning.
“We just — just — fixed it a month ago because somebody tore it up,” a perturbed Ricketts said. “It’s been hit again with more damage.”
County Attorney Jim Ensley seemed more exasperated by the news than the commissioners, saying he had just gotten paperwork filed with the driver’s insurance company from the last time.
“Can we delineate between what the last damage was and what the new damage is?” Ensley asked.
While damage to any of the nine covered bridges of Putnam County is a problem, Baker’s Camp is especially troubling, as a $1.098 million rehab project on it was completed in September 2015.
“That’s one of our nicer covered bridges,” Ricketts said.