A 46 year old Henderson man was injured in a single-vehicle wreck when police say he fell asleep at the wheel.
Henderson Police say the wreck occurred around 7:00 Saturday morning when Robert Beck was driving his van westbound in the 1900 block of Clay Street and crossed into the other lane of traffic and ran off the road where the vehicle crashed into a ditch of rock and dirt around a culvert pipe.
According to a Facebook post by the Henderson Fire Department, two engines and rescue responded to the scene of the crash where the van involved was carrying dozens of gallons of both oil-based and latex paint among other related items. The fire department indicates a small portion of the vehicle had to be cut away to aid in the removal of the driver. Due to the strong fumes inside the vehicle, fire officials say crews donned particulate filtering masks and placed one on Beck. They say removing the driver took some time because all of the cargo that had shifted violently forward upon impact which pushed a divider/cage assembly forward against the front seats. Crews had to remove the cage and indicate they cut away the seat backs make room for getting the 46 year old Henderson man out safely while maintaining c-spine immobilization on the patient.
Police say Beck was treated at the scene for multiple injuries and then he was transported to the emergency room at Methodist Hospital for further treatment.
(Pictures: Henderson Co. Fire Department)