Tree of Ténéré

An interesting tidbit, per Wikipedia:

The Ténéré Tree (French: L'Arbre du Ténéré) was a solitary acacia, of either Acacia raddiana or Acacia tortilis, that was once considered the most isolated tree on Earth—the only one for over 400 kilometres (250 mi). It was a landmark on caravan routes through the Ténéré region of the Sahara Desert in northeast Niger, so well known that it and the Arbre Perdu or 'Lost Tree' to the north are the only trees to be shown on a map at a scale of 1:4,000,000. The Tree of Ténéré was located near a 40-metre (131 feet)-deep well. It was knocked down in 1973, by an alleged drunk truck driver.

Not even a lonely tree surrounded by 250 miles of empty desert in all directions is safe from the menace of alcohol.

How is it even possible?

From the Twin Cities Pioneer Press:

A driver with a revoked license and convicted 14 times of drunken driving crashed into a cage of propane tanks before being stopped by police, according to charges filed this week in St. Croix County.

The incident Monday led to one count of felony driving with a prohibited alcohol concentration-15th offense and a misdemeanor count of driving with a revoked license against Mark Alan Johnson, 64 of New Richmond. He was also cited for failure to notify police of an accident.

A manager at the BP station on Fourth Street in New Richmond reported at 8:46 a.m. that someone had just driven into a cage containing propane tanks on the side of the building.

Gas station employees approached the man after the crash, and Johnson told them his car’s brakes had failed, the employees told police.

Police then learned that Johnson’s driving privileges had been revoked due to alcohol, he was on probation and that he’d had 14 prior drunken-driving convictions. A probation agent requested that police test Johnson for alcohol since he was prohibited from driving with a concentration greater than 0.02.

Johnson told police he’d had a beer for lunch. He blew a 0.036.

There it is. A man with a revoked license and 14 DWIs gets number 15. Expect number 16 in a couple years. Another piece of evidence that alcoholism isn't an addiction but a lifestyle.