A parked ambulance rolled forward and rear-ended a station wagon in Oyama, Tochigi Prefecture, injuring a 28-year-old man.
The wagon, with nine people inside — including five children aged 7 or younger — was parked 10 meters from the ambulance. The injured man was the driver of the station wagon. When the accident happened, he was outside the car and tried to stop the ambulance.
According to the police, the ambulance had been driven to the scene to tend to a sick man in a noodle shop. Three paramedics left the ambulance in the shop's parking lot before it started to roll at around 12:40 a.m. Sunday
The ambulance has an automatic transmission. The 27-year-old driver left the engine running and did not set the parking brake.
The fire department apologized for the accident and said it will ensure that aid car crews park their ambulances properly when they leave their vehicles.