LAKEPORT — The tires continued to spin and the engine kept running after a pickup truck backed up from the owner”s driveway into Clear Lake Wednesday in Lakeport without anyone in the driver”s seat.
Violet Dunken said she”s thankful neither she nor anyone on Lakeshore Boulevard got hurt as her husband”s white Chevrolet Silverado ran in reverse into the lake and submerged about half way.
“I prayed please don”t let it hit anybody,” Dunken said. “It missed my daughter”s car, went across the road when nobody was coming and ended up in the lake still running.”
Dunken said she was getting ready to pick up her great grandson and instead of releasing the parking break pulled the lever to open the hood. She got out, closed the hood and looked in to release the parking break. The truck was already in reverse when she released the parking break, so it started to back up and knocked her to the ground with the open door.
“It didn”t hurt me, but I couldn”t get up fast enough to get in and stop the truck,” Dunken said.
Dunken said so far all she noticed was a bit of water damage to the truck.
Lakeport police officer Jarvis Leishman directed traffic one way on the 2000 block of Lakeshore Boulevard as Frank Jones of Jones Towing pulled the truck out of the lake.
Dunken didn”t immediately call her husband to tell him about his truck.
“I don”t think I”ll drive his truck again,” Dunken said. “I know where all the gadgets are in my car.”
Contact Katy Sweeny at kdsweeny@gmail.com or call her directly at 263-5636, ext. 37.
