One man in Poland most likely woke up with more than a hangover last week, after driving a Soviet tank through a town while drunk.
The man, while under the influence of alcohol, drove the T-55 tank along the streets of Pajęczno on Thursday night (June 13).
When police arrived at the scene after receiving a number of reports, they found the Soviet-era tank parked on a central roadway.
Just before 10pm on Thursday night, the Poviet Police Headquarters responded to the unusual report of a tank driving along the streets, Twoje Pajęczno reports.
Upon arriving at the scene on Mickiewicza Street, police officers found a man standing next to the tank who had previously been a passenger within the vehicle.
They also found a 49-year-old intoxicated man nearby, who was driving the T-55 at the time the reports came in.
It turns out the man had been authorised to drive the vehicle, although he was only supposed to place it on and off a trailer on which it was being transported – not drive it around the streets in the middle of the night.
It can also be assumed the 49-year-old wasn’t expected to be drunk while operating the 45 ton military vehicle. But there you go.
The situation the intoxicated man found himself in only got worse, as police determined the tank currently had no insurance to be on the road in the first place.
Police couldn’t get the T-55 off the road until approximately 5am, when a former soldier able to drive such vehicles helped load the tank onto a tow truck.
So how did this all come about, you’re probably wondering? Well, as the vehicle was being transported on a trailer, it had to be removed for a short period of time while the trailer – which was damaged – was fixed.
During this repair, the drunk man took the tank for a ride along the streets of Pajęczna instead of loading it back onto the trailer as he was supposed to.
The 49-year-old was detained in police custody and questioned once sober. He could face up to two years in prison for driving while drunk.
However, he could face a much harsher sentence of up to eight years for creating ‘direct danger of a catastrophe in land, water or air traffic’.
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A Broadcast Journalism Masters graduate who went on to achieve an NCTJ level 3 Diploma in Journalism, Lucy has done stints at ITV, BBC Inside Out and Key 103. While working as a journalist for UNILAD, Lucy has reported on breaking news stories while also writing features about mental health, cervical screening awareness, and Little Mix (who she is unapologetically obsessed with).