A one-vehicle accident occurred Wednesday afternoon at the Deli Plus Gas Station in Becker in which the vehicle left Hwy. 10 and crashed into a canopy post guarding the gas pumps at the corner of 1st Street and Sherburne Avenue.
The driver, 39-year-old Binh P. Cao of Becker, was traveling west on Hwy. 10 when he left the road, drove through the ditch near Sherburne State Bank and launched onto Sherburne Avenue and into the post. Cao was presumed to have had a medical emergency of some kind while driving and thus lost control of the 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee SUV.
Cao was wearing his seatbelt and his airbag deployed. His injuries are considered serious.
Reports are that a sheriff’s deputy was also riding along Hwy. 10 just a few blocks behind the Cao and was the first to arrive on scene. Becker police also had two officers arrive almost immediately following the deputy’s 911 call.
An ambulance arrived within minutes and rescuers were able to pull Cao from the vehicle and place him on a stretcher. Cao was then placed in the ambulance and the paramedics immediately called for the air ambulance.
LifeLink III was dispatched and within minutes the chopper was guided to park in the bank parking lot across from the accident scene. Paramedics rushed to the ambulance, stabilized the victim and wheeled him from the ambulance to the waiting helicopter. Cao was air-lifted to HCMC in Minneapolis.
Members of the local police, county sheriff’s department and the state patrol remained at the scene to reconstruct the accident and make sure the scene was deemed safe for vehicles and pedestrians.
Cao’s Cherokee was towed to Peterson’s Towing in Big Lake.
