Pickup truck backs up over mother, 2 children in tent

A 20-year-old woman has been arrested for allegedly backing her pickup truck over a mother and two children who were asleep in a tent at a campsite in northeastern B.C. 

The incident began early Monday morning during an argument between the woman and her boyfriend at the off-road campsite near Tumbler Ridge, according to Cpl. Dan Moskaluk.

'I sat up and I seen the lights of the back of the truck, and I heard the truck accelerate.'—Shyane Cooper

"In an attempt to leave the area, the female is alleged to have backed a pickup truck over the tent and its sleeping occupants," said Moskaluk.

Inside the tent, Shyane Cooper, 20, saw the lights of the truck coming toward her and her two young boys sleeping beside her.

"I sat up and I seen the lights of the back of the truck and I heard the truck accelerate," she told CBC News.

Pinned under the truck

Cooper managed to push the children out of the way, but ended up getting pinned by the truck herself.

"My boyfriend was trying to pull me out from under it, but I was completely stuck. He had to get someone to jump back in the truck and take it off of me," she said.

Cooper suffered several broken bones, including some in her face. She was rushed to the local health-care centre and then transferred to the Dawson Creek Hospital, where she is recovering in stable condition.

Her three-year-old boy required stitches to the back of his head, but her 18-month-old boy escaped uninjured.

The driver was arrested shortly afterward and is co-operating with police. She could face a charge of dangerous driving, said Moskaluk.

Death threats against the driver through social media are complicating the investigation, however, and police are warning people to stop.

"These people who make these types of threats themselves could look at facing criminal charges themselves." said Moskaluk.