TOPSHAM, Maine — A Topsham man who runs a tow truck service was injured Monday morning after the police cruiser he was unloading from a flatbed truck ran over him.
The truck operator, Stanley Williams, 53, of Anytime Wrecker Service in Topsham, was transported to Maine Medical Center following the incident, which was reported at around 10 a.m. Williams was still being evaluated in the emergency room Monday afternoon, according to a hospital spokesperson.
According to Sgt. Fred Dunn, the cruiser had a mechanical problem and was towed by Anytime Wrecker Service to Mailly Motors at 62 Tedford Road.
Topsham officer Troy Garrison witnessed the incident but was unable to do anything but watch it unfold. He said the cruiser door was open and Williams, who was on the ramp with the car, reached in to put it in reverse, and the car took off as Williams was holding the steering wheel, dragging him down the ramp. The front tire caught his front leg and pulled him off the steering wheel, Garrison said. The tire ran over Williams from around the right hip area to the left shoulder.
William’s brother, Ralph Williams, said his niece, Cindy Williams of Topsham, was working with her father, Stanley Williams, today. Cindy Williams had checked on her dad, who said he was all set, but as she walked around the truck the accident happened.
Ralph Williams said when the truck flatbed is down low to the ground, his brother often rolls the car off gradually to avoid damaging the bottom of the car. This time, it must have slipped his mind that the safety chain was off, Ralph Williams said. He said his brother likely had aimed to put the car into neutral and tried to hold the cruiser in place when is started rolling, but it dragged him down under the car instead and rolled over him.
Ralph believes Stanley’s weak leg likely gave out on him.
On the way home from the hospital around 3:30 p.m., Ralph Williams said his brother sustained broken ribs and bad bruising, but no apparent internal or head injuries.
Ralph Williams said his brother had open heart surgery in March 2011 and had just gone back to work a few months ago.
Ralph Williams said he and Cindy Williams were headed home to inform customers who have already been calling about what had happened, and “try to take care of [the business] as best we can until he can come back.”
They will work on contracting with a replacement driver.
The cruiser sustained minor damage when the open cruiser door scraped against another truck.
To see more from The Times Record, visit timesrecord.com.
WHAT A STUPID AND MISLEADING HEADLINE.
Exactly what I was thinking.
A….YUP!
The story may not be as dramatic as you were hoping, but the headline is 100% factual. He was run over by a police cruiser. It’s not the BDN’s fault you automatically assumed that a police officer was driving the cruiser at the time of the accident.
I believe you are 100% wrong. The cruiser was not RUNNING! The car rolled over him .See the difference?
BUT the headline got you to read the story didn’t it? Think that maybe they put headlines like that to catch your eye to read it?? Just sayin
I don’t think anyone was hoping anything! It was a catchy headline but neither factual, informational and has questionable ethical issues. Not going to hang the reporter but Editor should know better.
An attempt at sensationalism, to say the least, and a disservice to all. This should have been edited before being reprinted.
This towing company has very caring owners. I hope that he recovers from his injuries and is able to resume work. He works hard and is very helpful beyond need be.
I totally agree the cruiser was rolled over not run over which seems intentionally by an officer or by accident. I guess anything to get the attention of readers.
“The front tire caught his front leg and pulled him off the steering wheel, Garrison said.” Um…what is a front leg? Does this mean that this man has back legs too?
maybe there was a cop inside, he was just really tiny and nobody saw him…
A pocket c0p if you will. ;-)
I don’t really care about the headline, just happy to hear that the man will be OK. Best wishes for a full recovery Mr. Williams.
Thank you for the well wishes. it has been a very hard last 18 months between his heart attack, my severe illness and now this very freak accident. the officer was not involved… he is a very close friends of ours and he need everyone prayers as much as my dad and my family does…
Aww, of course, I bet it was quite traumatic for him ( the officer ) to be helpless while it happened in front of him. You are all in my thoughts, stay strong, things can and will only look up from here.
thanks sam278 for the support. i talked with the officer tonight and he is doing better. Also my dad was released tonight from Maine Med.
That is excellent news ! Tell your dad that people are thinking of him and that from here on out there can only be good things for him, so very lucky to have so many people that love him so much.
thank you for all the great words of comfort and support… if you facebook look me up if you want to continue to get updates.
Will do.
An absolute awful shame. These stories of hard working people just trying to earn a paycheck and getting maimed or killed really bother me.
My sincere condolences to Mr. Williams’ family and friends.
If all you people can do is criticize the editor of BDN, then maybe you should stop reading this newspaper. You should be commenting on the story and not the headline. It’s a headline, what do expect it to say?! It needs to be short and to the point.
On that note, I wish all the best for this man in his recovery!
Well said and he came home today. Thank you for your support.
I don”t know all the facts,but i believe the police car acted stupidly.I hope Mr Williams makes a speedy recovery.
Just as a precaution the Attorney General has ruled it justified…
“Heeere’s your sign…”
This story was about my dad and is 100% fact. I was a resident of Topsham all my life and feel that it has been great to see the support… He is to be released in the next few days. The story was picked up from Brunswick Times Record headline and all…
He is home now again thank you all for the best wishes and support it means alot for my family and all of us at A.W.S LLC