Store struck in hit and run hopes video surveillance will identify fuel truck driver
A truck driver rammed his semi-trailer through a support post in front of a downtown Quesnel, B.C. store, narrowly missing two pedestrians on the sidewalk.
The store that was struck on Jan. 1, Cariboo Keepsakes Local Arts and Crafts, has now released video surveillance footage in the hopes of identifying the driver of what they describe as a Peterbilt fuel truck.
“It’s a nightmare … how easy it would have been to hit the pedestrians on the sidewalk,” said Veronika Kregel, president of the Quesnel Crafters Society, which operates the volunteer-run, non-profit store.
“I was afraid seeing this video, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, oh my gosh.'”
Semi-trailer crashes onto sidewalk
2 days agoDuration 0:56A truck driver rammed a semi-trailer through a support post in front of a store in downtown Quesnel, B.C., on Jan. 1, narrowly missing two pedestrians on the sidewalk before driving away. The store, Cariboo Keepsakes, has released video surveillance footage in the hopes of identifying the driver. 0:56
Moments after a man walks past the store, the video appears to show the truck crash through a wooden pillar and jump the sidewalk, stopping just two meters away from a second pedestrian, who flees in the opposite direction.
The truck backs up, pulling down broken wooden posts.
The truck parks for several minutes. A man believed to be the driver checks the back of his truck and glances at the damaged building before driving away.
There were no reports of injuries.
The driver of the transport truck left the scene without contacting police, said Jeff Norburn, Director of Community Services for the City of Quesnel, which owns the building. The city filed a police report and has fixed the damage.
The building that was struck is a restored 1860s Hudson’s Bay log cabin. It sits on a tight corner along Highway 97 in downtown Quesnel.
The city said it’s not the first time a large vehicle has struck the building.
Kregel said her store installed video surveillance after an incident involving a large motorhome. She said she’s afraid another vehicle could hit the store “full force” and injure someone inside.
Cpl. Madonna Saunderson of North District RCMP said there are no updates on the investigation into the identity of the driver.