Shots fired to stop dump truck attempting to ram police vehicle …

Police in Smithers, B.C., fired shots in an attempt to stop a man driving a large piece of heavy equipment through the community Sunday night, causing extensive damage.

RCMP Cpl. Alex Bérubé said the driver allegedly tried to run into a police vehicle during a chase of more than three kilometres through the community, approximately 370 kilometres northwest of Prince George.

Police were called shortly after 9 p.m. PT about an impaired motorist driving the rock truck, also known as an articulated dump truck, near a Highway 16 bridge on the east end of Smithers, he said.

“Due to the escalation of potential grievous harm to police, shots were fired.” 

Police assess damage to a vehicle that was reportedly smashed by the rock truck. (Jim Oud)

Damage to soccer fields, other property

Police brought the truck to a halt on a residential street beside a playground more than three kilometres away.

Photos taken of the aftermath show the truck with two shattered windshields.

Bérubé said no one was injured. 

He said RCMP  apprehended the driver under the Mental Health Act, and he’s now under investigation for possible criminal charges. 

A large portion of Smithers, B.C., was blocked off Monday as police investigated the damage. (Donovan Dennis/Facebook)

In a recorded video posted to social media Monday, Smithers Mayor Gladys Atrill described a “chase through town involving this large truck and police.”

Atrill said the truck had damaged the Chandler Park soccer fields, Saint Joseph’s School, and other property. 

She urged people in Smithers “to be really kind to those who may have been negatively affected by the whole incident.”

RCMP couldn’t confirm the extent of damage.

Social media posts in Smithers showed police tape around damaged cars and a shed with a wall smashed in. 

Bérubé said forensic investigators are trying to determine how many shots police fired.