Fruit Valley man hurt when van rolls away

A man’s runaway van struck and injured him when it rolled away and across Fruit Valley Road and Lake Shore Drive in the Fruit Valley neighborhood Tuesday afternoon.

Clark County Fire District 6 said a man was preparing to leave his home in the 8100 block of Fruit Valley Road to run some errands when, around 3:30 p.m., his van somehow rolled away.

Clark County sheriff’s Sgt. Chad Rothenberger said it appeared the van popped out of gear, was not in gear, or its parking break disengaged.

Rothenberger said the man tried to climb in the driver’s seat to stop the van, but got caught under the vehicle. The van ran over his right leg, and he was sent to PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center for his injuries.

District 6 spokesman David Schmitke said the man’s injuries didn’t appear to be life-threatening.

The van smacked the man’s mailbox before rolling across Fruit Valley Road then Lake Shore Drive, down the embankment on the other side and through a blackberry patch on Lake Shore Drive’s west side.

“It’s really a miracle that it didn’t hit another vehicle,” Schmitke said.

Rothenberger said the van was largely undamaged, and it was driven from the scene once pulled back up the embankment.