MASON CITY – An intoxicated man was arrested after he was seen passed out near railroad tracks, causing a traffic delay Sunday.
The incident took place on Sunday, October 9, 2016, at 3:16 PM, when Mason City police and fire medics were called to investigate a subject lying next to train tracks in the 500 block of 1st Street NW.
The man found by the tracks was passed out caused the train to have to stop. Witness and officer report states he was lying next to – not on the tracks. A train crew that was in area stopped to check on him but not to avoid striking him, police say. This caused the traffic on First Street to have a longer delay waiting for the intersection to clear.
Police were able to wake the man, 47-year-old Mark Ciska, and got him standing. They started questioning him, and reported back to dispatch that he was extremely 10-56 (intoxicated). Ciska was handcuffed and taken to Cerro Gordo County Jail on a charge of third or subsequent offense public intoxication. He remains jailed Monday.
The train started back up as soon as Ciska was taken away.