2 injured in SUV crash; driver charged with DUI

Donovans Salvage on Donovans Road north of Georgetown (Photo: Google maps)
Donovan Salvage Works on Donovans Road north of Georgetown (Photo: Google maps)

GEORGETOWN, DELAWARE (8/5/2016) Delaware State Police say alcohol is believed to have contributed to an SUV crash north of Georgetown on Thursday that injured two people. Both were flown to hospitals.

The collision was reported at 2:47 p.m. in the parking lot of Donovan Salvage Works at 20262 Donovans Road.

Octavio Barrios-Fuentes, 35, of Georgetown, was driving a 2001 Dodge Durango sport-utility vehicle southbound on the road and failed to negotiate a sharp left curve, police said.

The SUV struck a parked 1999 Buick LeSabre in the parking lot, which spun around and hit Harvey T. Thornes, 36, of Millsboro, as he was walking by the car. He was thrown into a parked Chevrolet Equinox.

The Buick continued to spin and struck a detached food trailer. Cynthia L. Brown, 50, of Lincoln, was working inside and the impact caused grease to spill out of the vats onto her.

The Durango came to a stop on the grass shoulder just south of the initial collision.

Barrios-Fuentes then fled on foot down nearby railroad tracks to a home in Georgetown, where he was taken into custody about 25 minutes later by troopers and Georgetown police, state police said.

Brown was flown to Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Pennsylvania, in stable condition with severe burns.

Thornes was flown to Christiana Hospital in Stanton with undetermined injuries. Police said he was in stable condition.

Barrios-Fuentes was charged with two counts of first-degree vehicular assault, leaving the scene of a personal injury crash, driving under the influence of alcohol, driving without a valid license and various other traffic-related offenses.  He was being held at Sussex Correctional Institution near Georgetown in lieu of $8,000 cash bond.