Update 9:05 a.m. Wednesday
Police on Wednesday identified the driver as 29-year-old Mariah Bearcloud and said the vehicle she was driving had recently been reported as stolen.
Bearcloud faces possible charges of drunken driving and theft, police said.
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Original Report
BILLINGS - Several Billings students survived a close call Tuesday afternoon after a suspected drunken driver took out several vehicles and a bike rack in front of Highland Elementary School.
Billings police say it happened shortly after 3:30 p.m. Tuesday and was the culmination of a destructive spree that began several blocks away on Delphinium Drive.
According to authorities, a 29-year-old woman veered onto lawns and sidewalks, hitting several vehicles. Police believe the woman was drunk.
Witness Ross Clark was taking the snow tires off of his truck when he heard the vehicle approaching. He then saw it headed straight toward him on his neighbor’s lawn. The truck slammed into his vehicle, pushing it across his yard.
“I’m alive. I could have been down on my hands and knees putting that last tire on,” Clark said.
The suspected drunken driver wasn’t done yet.
Keagan Harsha / Q2 News
“She started back up, and that’s when she took off like a rocket,” Clark said.
Police say the truck continued its destruction several blocks away outside Highland Elementary School. The woman allegedly hit several more vehicles outside the school before taking out a bike rack full of bikes just outside the doors of the school.
Shara Rose’s 8-year-old son was playing outside the school when it happened.
“He heard everything. He explained everything. He heard all the sounds,” Rose said. “A lot of cars got hit. A lot of kids are scared. I really hope this lady gets help.”
No kids were hit by the vehicle. Billings police arrived on scene and detained the woman. Charges have yet to be filed.
