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Kelowna RCMP clarify wording over man dragged by truck at tent city

A man in a tent at Kelowna’s homeless encampment was run over by a truck on Sept. 25
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(Jacqueline Gelineau/Capital News)

A man was run over by a truck on Sept. 25, and the event is considered an ‘incident,’ not an ‘accident,’ as initially stated by the Kelowna RCMP.

A man was brought to a hospital with ‘significant’ injuries after being hit and dragged by the truck while in his tent. The driver was arrested, prompting Kelowna RCMP to put out a press release calling the event an accident.

READ MORE: Driver ran over, dragged person inside a tent at Kelowna homeless encampment

Since then, Kelowna RCMP Communications Officer Const. Mike Della-Paolera has clarified, saying that the RCMP considers the event to be an ‘incident’ that is under investigation, not an accident. He explained that the release was made by an inexperienced member of the team and that the term accident is not correct.

Shortly after 12 a.m., on Saturday, Sept. 25, Kelowna RCMP was called to Kelowna’s temporary shelter, or, ‘Tent City,’ located on the Rail Trail, for a report of an intoxicated driver driving through the encampment, said Insp. Beth McAndie, investigative service officer for the Kelowna RCMP.

The man in his tent was run over and then dragged by the driver of the Dodge truck with Alberta plates.

Witnesses helped the victim until Emergency Services arrived.

Reports on social media say that residents of the encampment prevented the driver from leaving the scene until police arrived.


@Rangers_mom
Jacqueline.Gelineau@kelownacapnews.com

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Jacqueline Gelineau

About the Author: Jacqueline Gelineau

I'm a reporter in the beginning stages of my career. I joined the team at Capital News in November 2021...
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