Good Deed Met with Bad Luck, and Then Some

South of Reno, along that stretch of road they call Interstate 580–a place not fit for man nor beast in the wee hours–a most lamentable business took place Saturday morning.

‘Twas about 2:15 by the clock when one solitary soul, beset by moonshine, saw fit to wreck his vehicle smack in the middle of the southbound lanes just south of Mt. Rose Highway. No sooner had his wreckage come to rest than a Good Samaritan, a woman of stout heart and tender conscience, took it upon herself to stop and offer aid–a thing so rare these days it ought to be preserved in a museum.

But Fate, which has no more manners than a goat at a garden party, had other ideas. Before she could assist–another motorist–barreling along the southbound way with a head full of booze–crashed into the wreckage and struck the Good Samaritan dead where she stood.

The Nevada Highway Patrol, speaking later in that sober, solemn way that law officers adopt after a particularly grim duty, noted that both the first and second drivers seemed to have taken to drink, or something worse, before climbing behind the wheel. Both were arrested and carted off to the Washoe County jail, there to reflect upon their sins.

The authorities, keen to keep the rabble from gawping at the scene, shut down the southbound side of I-580 at Mt. Rose Highway around six o’clock and kept it closed for several hours. No names are getting released right now, and the conditions of the offending parties were left to speculation–though one might wager they were in no condition to make introductions.

The road is open again, though the stain upon the morning and human nature remains.