A 50-year-old Qualicum Beach woman suffered from what police are calling “a diabetic state” Friday night when she drove her 2000 Honda Accord into a Shell gas station, nearly running over two men having coffee.
Oceanside RCMP Cpl. Jesse Foreman said the accident happened at 10:25 p.m. at the Qualicum Beach gas station along Island Highway.
“Inside the (Shell) convenience store there is a bar overlooking the street and two Qualicum Beach men were having coffee,” explained Foreman. “A vehicle pulled into where it would normally park, the men looked up and realized the car was going too fast to stop so they jumped out of the way and the vehicle smashed into the store.”
Foreman said the driver, who was in medical distress, was taken by ambulance to hospital but did not suffer any major physical injuries.
No other people were injured in the accident. Foreman said the Shell gas station incurred quite a bit of damage.
Foreman said people driving into storefronts is a common occurrence in the Parksville Qualicum Beach area.
In this case, it was due to a medical condition but Foreman said “it happens often and it’s scary.”
He said people often mistake their gas pedal for their brake.
In December, a person drove into the Fields store in Parksville, smashing the window. It was the second time in the past year that same window was destroyed by a vehicle.
