Pickup crashes into post office

An 88-year-old Rathdrum man crashed his Ford pickup through the front doors of the city’s post office on Monday morning.

Antone Trampus had just arrived when his white F-250 slammed into the building, Rathdrum Postmaster Roger Spears said. Nobody was injured, Spears said, but Trampus was “shook up a bit.”

A construction crew arrived in the afternoon to try to repair the damage to the front of the building, Spears said.

The post office is closed until further notice, but officials hoped to have it open again today.

The incident is considered unintentional, Rathdrum Police Chief Robert Moore said.

“Let’s put it this way,” Moore said. “Witnesses said they saw the brake lights on and the wheels spinning. Sounds like he just got mixed up.”

Moore said the department has not been able to determine whether Trampus has vehicle insurance; he was unable to provide proof at the scene.

“We’re not 100 percent sure yet, so I’d rather not say either way,” he said.

Meanwhile, the building will stay closed until officials are sure it is safe, Spears said.

“There’s concern that if we have people going back and forth under it, it could collapse,” he said.

“We’re going to make every effort to get it opened back up quick.”