1 dead and 13 injured in semitrailer crash at a Texas public safety office, with the driver jailed

BRENHAM, Texas (AP) — A Texas semitrailer driver rammed a stolen 18-wheeler through the front of a public safety building where his renewal for a commercial driver’s license had been rejected, killing one person and injuring 13 others, authorities said Friday.

The intentional crash into the single-story brick building off a highway in Brenham, a rural town outside of Houston, littered debris in the parking lot and left a gaping hole in the entrance. The crash damaged the front of the red semitrailer, which was hauling materials on a flatbed.

After crashing into the building the first time, the driver backed up the truck with the intention of smashing it again before being detained, Brenham Mayor Atwood Kenjura said.

“It’s unfortunate that we are here gathered for a really senseless tragedy,” Kenjura said.

The driver — identified as Clenard Parker, 42 — was pulled out of the truck by authorities at the Texas Department of Public Safety office. Authorities say Parker did not resist when he was taken into custody and would face multiple felonies, but did not specify the charges.

On Thursday, Parker was told by employees at the office that he would not be eligible to renew his commercial driver's license, Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Justin Ruiz said. He did not elaborate as to why Parker's renewal was rejected.

One employee in the building was trapped “for a period of time” after the crash but no one who worked at the driver's license office suffered serious injuries, Republican state Sen. Lois Kolkhorst said.

It was unclear Friday afternoon where the person who was killed was located at the time of the crash.

Following the crash, two people were flown to a hospital in Bryan and another to Houston. Three people were transported to local hospitals but later released, and eight others were treated on the scene.

Parker, who lived in Chappell Hill about 10 miles (16 kilometers) east of the crash site, was being held without bail Friday in the Washington County jail in Brenham on two initial charges — suspicion of evading arrest causing serious bodily injury and unauthorized use of a vehicle.

It wasn’t immediately clear if Parker had a lawyer or would be appointed one at a future court appearance. The jail’s website didn’t list an attorney or pending court date.

Ruiz said he didn't know if Parker had a criminal record. He said they were still investigating whether he was armed at the time of the crash. He said they also were investigating whether his actions might be considered an act of terrorism.

“We’re trying to figure that out,” Ruiz said. He said the FBI was assisting in the investigation.

A heavy presence of police surrounded the building and drivers were urged to steer clear of the area on Friday. Brenham, a city of about 19,000 residents, is about 80 miles (128 kilometers) miles west of Houston.

Kolkhorst and Kenjura said the quick response by law enforcement helped avert a greater tragedy.

“We’re blessed more weren’t injured in this act of violence,” Kolkhorst said.

Kenjura said a fire department official told him if Parker had “veered to the left” and succeeded in striking the building again, “there would have been a collapse of the building resulting in more injuries and possibly death.”

The Texas Department of Public Safety is a sprawling agency and one of the largest state law enforcement operations in the country. It includes troopers who are a central part of a massive border security operation on the U.S.-Mexico border as well as the Texas Rangers, the state’s top criminal investigators. But the department also has offices across the state that issue driver’s licenses.

The Texas Rangers were leading the investigation into the crash, Ruiz said.

Associated Press writer Scott Sonner contributed to this report from Reno, Nevada. Coronado reported from Austin, Texas.

A stolen 18-wheeler crashed into a Texas Department of Public Safety office on US-290 in Brenham, Texas on Friday, April 12, 2024. The driver of a stolen semitrailer intentionally rammed it into the Texas public safety office in a rural town west of Houston on Friday, injuring multiple people, according to a state lawmaker. (Meredith Seaver/College Station Eagle via AP)

A stolen 18-wheeler crashed into a Texas Department of Public Safety office on US-290 in Brenham, Texas on Friday, April 12, 2024. The driver of a stolen semitrailer intentionally rammed it into the Texas public safety office in a rural town west of Houston on Friday, injuring multiple people, according to a state lawmaker. (Meredith Seaver/College Station Eagle via AP)

Law enforcement personnel work at the scene after a stolen 18-wheeler crashed into a Texas Department of Public Safety office on US-290 in Brenham, Texas on Friday, April 12, 2024. The driver of a stolen semitrailer intentionally rammed it into the Texas public safety office in a rural town west of Houston on Friday, injuring multiple people, according to a state lawmaker. (Meredith Seaver /College Station Eagle via AP)

Law enforcement personnel work at the scene after a stolen 18-wheeler crashed into a Texas Department of Public Safety office on US-290 in Brenham, Texas on Friday, April 12, 2024. The driver of a stolen semitrailer intentionally rammed it into the Texas public safety office in a rural town west of Houston on Friday, injuring multiple people, according to a state lawmaker. (Meredith Seaver/College Station Eagle via AP)

Emergency personnel work at the scene after an 18-wheeler crashed into the Texas Department of Public Safety Office in Brenham, Texas, Friday, April 12, 2024. A suspect is in custody in connection to a commercial vehicle crash at the Texas Department of Public Safety office in the rural town west of Houston. Texas DPS officials say multiple injuries were reported in the crash. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Emergency personnel work at the scene after an 18-wheeler crashed into the Texas Department of Public Safety Office in Brenham, Texas, Friday, April 12, 2024. A suspect is in custody in connection to a commercial vehicle crash at the Texas Department of Public Safety office in the rural town west of Houston. Texas DPS officials say multiple injuries were reported in the crash. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Emergency personnel work at the scene after an 18-wheeler crashed into the Texas Department of Public Safety Office in Brenham, Texas, Friday, April 12, 2024. A suspect is in custody in connection to a commercial vehicle crash at the Texas Department of Public Safety office in the rural town west of Houston. Texas DPS officials say multiple injuries were reported in the crash. (AP Photo/Lekan Oyekanmi)

Emergency personnel arrive on the scene after a an 18-wheeler crashed into the Texas Department of Public Safety Office in Brenham, Texas on Friday, April 12, 2024. A suspect is in custody in connection to a commercial vehicle crash at the Texas Department of Public Safety office in the rural town west of Houston. Texas DPS officials say multiple injuries were reported in the crash. (KTRK via AP)

HONG KONG (AP) — Asian stocks fell Wednesday with most of the markets in the region closed for a holiday. Meanwhile, U.S. stocks closed out their worst month since September.

Oil prices were lower and U.S. futures were mixed.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.4%, down to 38,271.77 after the country’s factory activity experienced a milder shrink in April, as the manufacturing purchasing managers’ index from au Jibun Bank rose to 49.6 in April from 48.2 in March. A PMI reading under 50 represents a contraction, and a reading of 50 indicates no change.

The yen continues to struggle. On Wednesday, the U.S. dollar rose to 157.88 Japanese yen from 157.74 yen.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dipped 1.1% to 7,581.90. Other markets in the region were closed due to the Labor Day holiday.

On Tuesday, the S&P 500 tumbled 1.6% to cement its first losing month in the last six, and ended at 5,035.69. Its momentum slammed into reverse in April — falling as much as 5.5% at one point — after setting a record at the end of March.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 1.5% to 37,815.92, and the Nasdaq composite lost 2% to 15,657.82.

Stocks began sinking as soon as trading began, after a report showed U.S. workers won bigger gains in wages and benefits than expected during the first three months of the year. While that’s good news for workers and the latest signal of a solid job market, it feeds into worries that upward pressure remains on inflation.

It followed a string of reports this year that have shown inflation remains stubbornly high. That’s caused traders to largely give up on hopes that the Federal Reserve will deliver multiple cuts to interest rates this year. And that in turn has sent Treasury yields jumping in the bond market, which has cranked up the pressure on stocks.

Tuesday’s losses for stocks accelerated at the end of the day as traders made their final moves before closing the books on April, and ahead of an announcement by the Federal Reserve on interest rates scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.

No one expects the Federal Reserve to change its main interest rate at this meeting. But traders are anxious about what Fed Chair Jerome Powell may say about the rest of the year.

GE Healthcare Technologies tumbled 14.3% after it reported weaker results and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected. F5 dropped 9.2% despite reporting a better profit than expected.

McDonald’s slipped 0.2% after its profit for the latest quarter came up just shy of analysts’ expectations. It was hurt by weakening sales trends at its franchised stores overseas, in part by boycotts from Muslim-majority markets over the company’s perceived support of Israel.

Helping to keep the market’s losses in check was 3M, which rose 4.7% after reporting stronger results and revenue than forecast. Eli Lilly climbed 6% after turning in a better profit than expected on strong sales of its Mounjaro and Zepbound drugs for diabetes and obesity. It also raised its forecasts for revenue and profit for the full year.

Stocks of cannabis companies also soared after The Associated Press reported the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration will move to reclassify marijuana as a less-dangerous drug in a historic shift. Cannabis producer Tilray Brands jumped 39.5%.

The earnings reporting season has largely been better than expected so far. Not only have the tech companies that dominate Wall Street done well, so have companies across a range of industries.

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury rose to 4.69% Wednesday from 4.61%.

Benchmark U.S. crude fell 75 cents to $81.18 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, lost 65 cents to $85.68 a barrel.

In currency trading, the euro cost $1.0655, down from $1.0663.

FILE - A person walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index at a securities firm in Tokyo, on April 22, 2024. Asian stocks fell Wednesday, May 1, 2024 with most of the markets in the region closed for a holiday. Meanwhile, U.S. stocks closed out their worst month since September. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)

FILE- A person looks at an electronic stock board showing Japan's stock prices at a securities firm in Tokyo, on April 30, 2024. Asian stocks fell Wednesday, May 1, 2024 with most of the markets in the region closed for a holiday. Meanwhile, U.S. stocks closed out their worst month since September. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)