Driver fell asleep, crashed into Falcon Town Hall outside Fayetteville

FALCON, N.C. (WTVD) -- A driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into a town hall building in Cumberland County on Wednesday night, according to North Carolina State Highway Patrol.

It happened around 9:45 on South West Street in Falcon.

Investigators identified the driver as Anthony Tidwell, 45. They said Tidwell fell asleep, ran off the side of the road, hit a barrier in the Falcon Town Hall parking lot and crashed through one of the building's walls.

The car traveled about 75 percent of the way through the building before coming to a stop.

"War zone. Looks like a car just ran right through the middle of it, and everything is just strewn everywhere," Mayor Clifton Turpin said. "If it had happened on Monday night, then it would have probably been disastrous because all of us were sitting right here on the other side of this wall."

Five people typically work out of the building, but no one was inside at the time.

Investigators said alcohol was not a factor in the crash. Still, Tidwell was charged with careless and reckless driving.

The Town Hall will return to normal operations by Monday.

He sustained minor injuries and caused approximately $30,000 worth of damage to the building.