Last Tuesday was a somber day in Beatrice, Nebraska, when a C3 went careening into the parking lot of Indian Creek Mall and got destroyed, killing its driver. Luckily, he managed to avoid hitting any of the unsuspecting parents and children before his demise.

The story goes that the driver, William Snyder, 53, screeched into the parking lot at a speed of over 70 MPH. It happened at around 3:45 in the afternoon, when reports say he hopped off the nearby Highway 77 onto an access road and immediately lost control.

One man, Mark Setzer, claimed to see the whole thing from start to finish: “This guy was heading south on the highway, swerving bad. He was doing about 75 miles an hour I’d estimate. He came in through the parking lot at a real high speed. He hit the van – it seemed like it was all the way over here – and the pole just about head on.”

Snyder clipped a Pontiac Montana minivan before striking a light pole, ultimately flipping the car onto its roof. Flames sparked instantly, stretching up to 12 feet.

Emergency services showed up immediately and put out the fire. Air bags and other tools were used to retrieve the driver, but he was sadly already dead. Authorities have no reason to believe that Snyder was intoxicated, but rather that this tragedy occurred as a result of an existing medical condition.

Whatever the case may be, it should be remembered that, fortunately, no one else was injured by this accident. Hopefully, it will prove the last time the folks at Beatrice have to see something as devastating as this.

The wrecked C3 clipped the nearby Pontiac Montana before finally knocking over a light pole and flipping over. Photo: Beatrice Daily Sun