KAMLOOPS — A Kamloops RCMP officer in his cruiser escaped injury Wednesday morning after being hit by a suspected drunk driver on Columbia Street.
Cpl. Jodi Shelkie says the collision occurred just after 6:00 a.m.
Dashcam video from a member of the public shows police take the suspect into custody at gunpoint a short time later.
“The Kamloops RCMP officer was driving his police vehicle westbound on Columbia Street when he saw a vehicle driving ahead of him, also in the westbound lane, weaving and striking the snowbank on the median,” Shelkie says.
“This vehicle turned left at 3rd Avenue and proceeded to travel west on Columbia Street but in the wrong lane. The police officer continued on westbound in the correct lane. He activated his emergency lights, turned his unmarked police vehicle around into the eastbound lane and stopped in the right lane in an attempt to stop the vehicle. The vehicle then struck the police car head on at a low speed.”
Shelkie says the officer had hoped to cause the vehicle to stop, but wasn’t anticipating a collision.
“He was just hoping that (the driver) would see him as he made the U-turn there with his lights activated. He pulled over and stopped in the right lane and was hoping that the person driving in the wrong lane would notice that there was a vehicle with lights flashing. However, he didn’t.”
Shelkie says the suspected drunk driver, who has yet to be named, suffered minor injuries and was taken to hospital.
“No other vehicles were impacted. Luckily, there were no other incidents that happened because of him driving in the wrong lane.”
