When police received a 9-1-1 call about a man passed out in his running car at Wembley Mall in Parksville, they raced to the scene and smashed the window to get him out.
Oceanside RCMP Corporal Richard van de Pol said the man was seen slumped in his car Feb. 20 in the mall parking lot.
“The male appeared to be unconscious. The vehicle was running and the driver was unresponsive. Police had to break the side window to gain access.”
The man, a 36-year-old Ladysmith resident, was taken to Nanaimo Regional General Hospital, where he was recovering.
Van de Pol said the incident remains under investigation.
“We are looking at it as a possibility of impaired by alcohol or drugs,” van de Pol said.