Beaverton driver rescued from dangling pickup

A Beaverton man was rescued, then arrested on DUII and other charges after a crash that left his pickup truck dangling precariously from a Highway 217 overpass Saturday afternoon, officials said.

Beaverton police and Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue crews were called to the Denney Road overpass shortly after 3:30 p.m. and arrived to find the red pickup truck hanging from the overpass, its driver alone inside.

A tow rope was tied to a sergeant’s patrol car to keep the truck from falling until fire crews secured the truck to a fire engine. They then used a fire engine equipped with a basket to get the driver, identified as Matthew Alan Hamilton, 38, out of the truck safely.

Traffic on the highway below was closed in both directions for a time, then the southbound lanes for several hours until a crane company could remove the pickup.

Hamilton was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment. He was then arrested for DUII, driving with a suspended license (from a previous DUII) and a misdemeanor warrant.

Officers said he would be lodged at the Washington County Jail after release from the hospital. His injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

The Oregonian reports that the wheels of the truck caught on part of the overpass and apparently kept it from falling.

There was no immediate word on how the crash occurred.