Intoxicated man spotted operating dump truck as part of interstate road crew, cops say

Interstate construction zones are notoriously dangerous, but an entirely unexpected threat was revealed when New Hampshire police charged one member of the road crew with being intoxicated on the job.

The 49-year-old suspect was seen operating a large dump truck around 11 p.m. Sunday, May 19, on Interstate 93 near Hooksett, New Hampshire State Police said in a news release.

“Troop D was requested to check the welfare of a commercial driver who was actively working at the construction project on I-93,” police said.

“Troopers received information that the driver was believed to be under the influence while operating a large dump truck, based on the driver’s operation of the vehicle in the construction zone.”

Trooper Noah Gooch responded and “observed indicators of impairment.”

The driver agreed to a field sobriety test and failed, officials said.

He was arrested and charged with “aggravated DWI” and later released with an order to appear in court, officials said. The driver lives in Manchester, just south of Hooksett.

Details of his behavior at the construction site were not released.

Repaving work on about 4 miles of Interstate 93 began May 5, and requires intermittent closures in both directions, according to the New Hampshire Department of Transportation.

The work is done at night from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m., Sunday through Friday, officials said.

Hooksett is about a 60-mile drive northwest of Boston.