UPDATED with Renner posting on Instagram: The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office in a press conference Tuesday revealed further information about Jeremy Renner’s New Year’s Day snow-plowing accident near his home in Reno, which saw the two-time Oscar nominee suffering chest trauma and orthopedic injuries, per his reps.
The press conference started mere minutes after the Hawkeye actor took to social media to say “Thank you all for your kind words. I’m too messed up now to type. But I send love to you all.”
Wishing Renner a “full and speedy recovery,” Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam said today that at this point in the investigation “we do not believe Mr. Renner was impaired at all and we believe this is a tragic accident.”
Balaam noted the “severe winter weather” in the area, where as much as 3 feet of new snow had fallen the night before as part of a winter storm. He also for the first time provided details of the accident, in which Renner used his Sno-Cat to free a vehicle of his, driven by a family member, from being stuck in snow near his Mt. Rose home about 25 miles outside Reno.
After Renner was able to free the car, Balaam said the actor got out of the Sno-Cat (aka a PistenBully) to talk to the family member, at which time the machine, which weighs more than 14,000 pounds, started to roll. Renner attempted to get back in the driver’s seat of the PistenBully.
“Based on the investigation, it’s at this point that Mr. Renner is run over by the PistonBully,” the Sheriff explained, “An eyewitness detailed seeing Mr. Renner getting into the PistonBully, and not seeing him again until the PistonBully came to a rest in a pile of snow in front of his driveway.”
“We don’t suspect any foul play,” Balaam said.
Answering questions from local media, the Reno-area sheriff today said the Sno-Cat is in the possession of the police and being inspected for mechanical failure and other issues.
“The investigation is ongoing,” Balaam mentioned.
The Hawkeye star underwent surgery and remained in the ICU in critical but stable condition.
Sgt. Kristin Vietti of the Washoe County Sheriff’s previously told Deadline that police “responded to a traumatic injury in the area of Mt. Rose Highway in Reno, Nevada” at 9 a.m. on New Year’s Day. Renner was taken by care flight to a local hospital and “was the only involved party in the incident,” per Vietti.
Reno Mayor Hillary Schieve told the The Reno Gazette Journal on Monday that Renner was helping a stranded car on New Year’s Day when he was run over by his own vehicle. Schieve, who is friends with Renner, was called when the accident occurred Sunday morning.
“He was helping someone stranded in the snow,” Schieve told the Gazette Journal. “He is always helping others.”
Renner is a honorary Washoe County Deputy Sheriff and has “made a tremendous impact on this community,” Balaam said Tuesday, praising the actor in the short presser.