Public service announcement: vehicles are not on the “accepted recyclable materials” list at the Lopez Dump.

On the morning of Saturday, July 14, a San Juan County Sheriff’s deputy and Lopez Island Fire and EMS responded to a report that someone had driven over the barrier at the transfer station.

A driver accidentally hit the gas too hard while backing up toward a dumpster and high-centered their SUV over the garbage container. While the front wheels remained on the concrete loading area, the frame was resting on what remained of the wooden timber barrier and the rear end of the car hung over the dumpster and 10 feet above the concrete below.

The driver and his dog companion were uninjured and the vehicle sustained only minor damage – primarily an obliterated hitch-mounted carrier and a dented fuel container that did not leak any fuel.

The deputy called county public works to help remove the SUV with a front-end loader. The vehicle was then dragged off the ledge the same way it came onto it. The whole ordeal closed the dump for 90 minutes.

One section of the steel “bridge ramps” between the top of the timbers to the inside of the garbage containers was completely destroyed along with the wood supporting it. There is not yet an estimate of the total damage.