AUGUSTA COUNTY, Va. – A South Carolina man has been arrested following a pursuit on I-81, Virginia State Police said.
Police received three calls shortly before 5:15 p.m. Tuesday from motorists heading south on I-81 in Augusta County about a white Chevrolet Avalanche driving aggressively and using the emergency shoulder as it weaved through traffic.
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Police said a trooper set up at the 214-mile marker, where he observed the Avalanche driving recklessly and recorded the vehicle traveling 90 mph in a posted 70 mph zone.
The trooper activated his emergency lights to initiate a traffic stop, but the driver of the Avalanche refused to stop and continued south on I-81 at high speed, police said. The pursuit continued south on the interstate with the Avalanche using the emergency shoulder to flee from the trooper.
Police said as the Avalanche made it into Rockbridge County, a sheriff's deputy deployed a tire deflation device on the vehicle. The Avalanche continued south on I-81 with flat tires, until it ran off the right side of the interstate at the 178-mile marker and struck a guardrail.
The driver, identified by VSP as Brandon Hill, 37, of South Carolina, was taken into custody without further incident, police said.
The trooper arrested Hill for DUI and also charged him with one felony count of eluding police, illegal use of the emergency shoulder, reckless driving and refusal to take a sobriety test, police said. Hill is being held at the Rockbridge County Jail.