A family with small children is safe after narrowly escaping a vehicle driven on a Norfolk County beach.
Ontario Provincial Police say it happened shortly before 11:30am Saturday on the main beach at Port Dover. Constable Ed Sanchuk says officers responded to a call concerning a motor vehicle collision.
Police say the driver of a blue van somehow drove onto the beach area, then reversed onto the road. The driver then suddenly drove over the curb onto the beach itself, hitting a tent and several chairs set up on the sand. The family, sitting on the sand, had to take quick evasive action to avoid being struck, says Sanchuk.
Several people held the driver until police arrived. He was arrested without incident.
The 43-year-old Stoney Creek man, identified by the OPP Sunday as Yourem Mako, is charged with dangerous driving, impaired driving, driving with more than 80mgs of alcohol in blood and failure to comply with probation order.
The OPP is praising the bystanders who ensured that the suspect was apprehended safely, avoiding serious injury or even death.
"The OPP would like to thank the Good Samaritans that provided assistance during the course of this incident," says OPP Detachment Commander Inspector Joseph Varga in a statement. "They were instrumental in detaining the male and preventing him from potentially colliding with other innocent victims on the beach."
Mako is set to appear in the Ontario Court of Justice at a later date.