West Vancouver police say a North Vancouver man escaped with a close call after his vehicle went off Cypress Bowl Road and rolled down a steep embankment.
First responders raced to the scene near Chippendale Road just after 9 a.m. Wednesday when workers at a nearby construction site noticed the car rolling.
Police say the car was heading south when the it drifted off into the left ditch where it continued for about 50 metres before it struck rocks at a dry creek bed and flipped over, rolling sideways down the embankment, eventually coming to rest upright.
The driver, a 42-year-old North Vancouver man, was taken to hospital and put into a medically induced coma.
By Thursday, he had regained consciousness and investigators say his head injuries are not as serious as they first feared.
He told family members he remembers reaching for something that had dropped, though he doesn’t remember what, before the accident.
“It’s a teachable moment for keeping your focus on the road,” said Const. Jeff Palmer, West Vancouver Police Department spokesman.
Investigators are planning to interview the driver next week after he’s had some time to recover. Palmer said police are not considering any charges at this point, and alcohol has been ruled out as a factor in the crash.
