DENVER — A Denver Police Department officer was struck by a firetruck and seriously injured during the Denver Nuggets parade in downtown on Thursday morning.
The crash happened about 11:30 a.m. near the end of the parade route at West 13th Avenue and Cherokee Street.
The officer was on the front passenger side of the truck, protecting fans from the truck, which was carrying several Nuggets players, when he was caught under the wheels, said Police Chief Ron Thomas at a briefing at Denver Health.
Video taken by Brian Willie and shared with 9NEWS showed the officer was conscious and moving after the crash. The officer was taken to a hospital with a serious lower-leg injury, where he was undergoing surgery to save his leg, Thomas said.
Mayor Michael Hancock identified the officer as Sgt. Justin Dodge. Thomas said Dodge is a veteran who's highly decorated and had been assigned to the SWAT division for a number of years.
Minutes before the crash, Sky9 showed fans over barriers in place to keep people out of the road. Fans were pressing up alongside the firetruck, with Denver Police officers closely lined up along the truck's sides.
After the officer was injured, Nuggets players including Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, and other parade participants who were on that firetruck, got off and into a DPD vehicle to continue to the Civic Center rally.
Thomas said fencing was in place to keep people out of the street, along with police officers along the parade route and around vehicles carrying Nuggets players, but that fans were able to "overcome" that. He said it wouldn't be fair to blame those fans who were celebrating the Nuggets.
"The only safety challenge we faced at that point was the injury that happened to the officer as he was protecting these community members from the firetrucks," Thomas said. "The officer was doing his job, protecting the public, and unfortunately was injured."
Denver Police said the cause of the crash was under investigation.
> Below: Video courtesy of Brian Willie shows the aftermath of the officer getting hit:
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