Whitehorse resident Paul Hearn was cited for vandalism and failing to exercise due care after his camper-truck rolled off Chilkoot Lake Road on the evening of Oct. 9. Hearn said he swerved to avoid a bear that darted into the road around 9 p.m; there were no witnesses. Hearn bumped his head, and state biologist Carl Koch was notified to follow up about the potential of an injured bear, but no evidence has been found.
“I had a quick reaction,” Hearn said. “I swerved, and then I cut back and I thought I was on the road, but anyways, the bank collapsed under my front wheels.” Hearn said he was going about 15 mph in a 25 mph zone, at .75 miles on Chilkoot Lake Road.
The 1 ton Chevy truck with a camper on top fell off the 25-foot embankment onto the driver side door, according to Park Ranger Travis Russell, who issued the citations. Russell responded to the call on the morning of Oct. 10. It was reported at 7:27 a.m., approximately 10 hours after the accident.
Using a wrecker, Paul Peters pulled the truck onto its wheels on Oct. 10; however, it wasn’t pulled up from the side of the river until the next morning when Jack Smith came with a loader.
Russell issued two citations to Hearn with fines totaling $470. Hearn has challenged the citation charges. A trial is set for Nov. 16 in Haines court. Hearn told CVN on Thursday that he will leave for Whitehorse in a few days, after he assesses the damage to his vehicle and gets some work done.