Jeremy Renner was trying to save his nephew from a sliding snowplow when he was run over, sheriff’s report says

Actor Jeremy Renner was crushed by a snowplow on New Years Day in the Reno, Nevada, area as he attempted to hijack the vehicle as it headed toward his nephew, according to a sheriff’s report obtained Thursday. Renner was seriously injured in the crash.

Renner, 52, and his adult nephew, Alexander Fries, were trying to pull a Ford pickup truck out of the snow when the accident happened, according to the report from the Washoe County Sheriff’s Office.

Fries told deputies who responded that he and Renner had hooked up a PistenBully snowplow to the truck with a chain to pull it out of a driveway. Fries then parked the truck in the middle of the street, and Renner turned the plow around and got out, according to the sheriff’s office report.

After Renner got out, Fries told officers that the snow plow had started moving towards him, even though no one was using it, the report said. Fries then ran towards the van in an effort to push it aside so it wouldn’t be hit by the snowplow, according to the report.

As Fries ran to the truck, however, he told deputies he saw his uncle jump on the plow’s tracks to try to get into the cab. Renner was trapped by the tracks, Fries told deputies, and was then crushed by the snowplow, the report said. Fries told deputies he suspected the plow may have been left running when Renner got out of it.

The plow continued to move forward, the report said, and it struck the front driver’s side of the truck and pushed it into the street before hitting a snow bank. Fries told deputies he ran to ask a neighbor for help after seeing his garage door open.

The neighbor called 911 and got some pads for Renner to try to stop the bleeding. Renner was eventually airlifted to hospital.

A spokesperson for Renner previously said the actor suffered blunt chest trauma and orthopedic injuries. On January 21, about three weeks after the accident, Renner posted on Instagram that he had broken more than 30 bones.

An inspection of the plow showed the vehicle appeared to have been modified, the report said, but the parking brake is believed to have still been working at the time. The impairment was not considered a factor in the accident, according to the report.

Renner, a two-time Oscar nominee, is best known for his role as the superhero Hawkeye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.