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Cochise County sheriff warns residents about flood risk, laser attacks on aircraft, rising DUIs after multiple incidents
Summary
Sheriff Mark Danlos warned Cochise County residents to avoid flooded roads, cautioned that aiming lasers at helicopters is a felony under state law, and described recent traffic incidents including a school bus sinkhole incident and a fuel-tanker rollover.
Sheriff Mark Danlos of Cochise County urged residents to avoid driving through flooded roads, warned that aiming a laser at aircraft is a felony, and detailed several recent accidents that have strained local responders.
Danlos, speaking on KWCD’s First Watch radio program, opened with a safety message about upcoming storm forecasts and saturated ground, saying “turn around, don’t drown” and urging people not to “force” passage through flooded washes or roadways. He said flood forecasts and saturated soil increase the risk of dangerous road conditions.
The sheriff recounted a recent incident in which a full-size school bus sank into what he described as a “pretty good sized sinkhole.” He said no children were injured and that an investigation is ongoing. Danlos told listeners he could not explain immediately why the bus did not collapse when the sinkhole opened but said he was “just glad no kids were hurt.”
Danlos also warned that pointing a laser at a helicopter is a felony and that his office is investigating a complaint. “If a helicopter is flying at night and you put a laser on that helicopter, that is a felony,” he said. He said the sheriff’s office is conducting a joint operation with local police to identify the person responsible.
On other roadway incidents, Danlos described a fuel-tanker rollover near Benson involving what he estimated was about 7,500 gallons of gasoline. The crash required a Phoenix hazmat team and major scene management because of spilled fuel; Danlos praised Benson Police Department and local fire personnel for their response.
Addressing a separate multi-vehicle crash, Danlos said alcohol was a contributing factor in a five-car pileup and cautioned against driving while impaired. He noted an increase in alcohol-related crashes and warned that signs of impairment — including from marijuana use in public — can lead to DUI charges. “If you show signs of impairment to a slight degree, … you will be charged for DUI,” he said.
Danlos closed with reminders about seasonal community events and traffic enforcement around popular destinations such as Apple Annie’s on Fort Grant Road, and called for people to slow down in high-traffic rural areas.
Ending: The sheriff’s office urged residents to follow weather warnings, avoid flooded roads, and report dangerous behavior. Danlos encouraged anyone with information about the laser incident to contact law enforcement and reiterated that impaired driving remains a top enforcement priority.
