Crews tend to an injured cyclist, who was wedged underneath a truck following a collision around 10 a.m. on Friday morning. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

accident

‘I turn around and my truck is 10 feet away from me:’ idling truck rolls down Finlayson St. driveway, hits & pins cyclist

Dec 16, 2022 | 11:01 AM

NANAIMO — A driverless truck has slipped its park brake and collided with a cyclist near the city’s downtown core.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue, RCMP and paramedics from BC Emergency Health Services were called to the 100 block of Finlayson St. near Haliburton St. just after 10 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 16, after reports of a person wedged underneath a truck.

The owner of the truck, who requested to stay anonymous, said his vehicle had been idling and warming up for between five and ten minutes as he was locking up his home and garage.

“I open the door [to the truck], put the dog in, close the tailgate, close the hatch, turn around, go to close the garage door and lock it up,” he told NanaimoNewsNOW. “Two minutes, I turn around and my truck is 10 feet away from me. I left the door wide open because I was just locking up to take off.”

He immediately chased the truck.

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“I see this kid coming right down the middle of the road…I start yelling and reaching for the door and by the time I get to the truck…the door had just shut so I couldn’t get inside it before it hit him.”

The driver said the cyclist, a young man, swerved to try and miss a collision but was unable to.

He was pinned underneath the truck, but avoided the wheels.

Both the owner and neighbours nearby rushed to help the man, cutting straps from his backpack and eventually dragging him out from underneath.

The owner wasn’t sure why his brake failed, noting it is “not physically possible” for his dog to have released it outside of moving around in the truck, triggering a mechanical failure.

“Absolutely bad timing and the fact my truck had been there ten minutes already warming up. I don’t know if my e-brake was iced up or something and it just slipped free and started rolling.”

He added he will “never be trusting e-brakes” again, and vowed to place chocks in front of his tires.

The driver remained at the scene the entire time and spoke with both Nanaimo RCMP and firefighters. The cyclist was taken to hospital for treatment. It wasn’t immediately clear the severity of their injuries.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue assistant chief Troy Libbus praised the actions of those first on scene.

“They called 911 immediately, then three of them all worked together to stabilize the vehicle. They chocked the tires and jacked up the truck to free the individual.”

He added a call to 911 right away is important as it allows emergency crews to arrive as soon as possible to stabilize a scene.

Finlayson St., east of Nicol St. was closed as emergency crews dealt with the incident. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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