Downtown Detroit Lakes looked like a demolition derby Tuesday evening after multiple vehicles were hit by an out-of-control Ford Econoline van, driven by a man who may have been suffering from medical problems.
No one, including the van driver, appeared to be seriously injured in the accident, though several vehicles were rear-ended hard enough to cause substantial damage, and the drivers complained of soreness and stiffness. A reporter counted nine damaged vehicles, but there may have been more.
The official police accident report is not expected to be available until later on Wednesday, but the older-model van apparently begin hitting and pushing vehicles on Washington Avenue near the Detroit Lakes Public Library, where vehicles were pushed up on sidewalks on both sides of the street.
Witnesses said the van appeared to be accelerating throughout the accident, with the engine whining and tires spinning, it hit vehicles and pushed them out of the way only to continue on to hit more vehicles.
The van ended up in the library parking lot, where it pushed three or four vehicles together in a jumbled mess.
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Detroit Lakes police officers, firefighters and St. Mary's EMS workers responded to the accident, which occurred about 6 p.m. Tuesday.
