Van full of children rolls into Rainbow Blvd. traffic

By Cara McCoy

Sunday, April 5, 2009 | 11:38 a.m.

Six children suffered minor injuries Saturday after their parents left them alone in a vehicle with the keys inside and, with a 7-year-old boy behind the wheel, it collided with a pickup truck in an area near Rainbow Boulevard and Sahara Avenue, Metro Police said.

At about 4:35 p.m., a 2001 Chevrolet Suburban full of children -- two 4-year-old girls, a 2-year-old girl, a 5-year-old boy, an 8-year-old girl and the 7-year-old driver -- rolled backwards out of the driveway of a business and into the southbound lanes of the 2700 block of South Rainbow Boulevard, police said. The parents, who were inside the business, had left the keys in the vehicle, authorities said.

Clifford Troxell, 53, of Las Vegas, was the driver of the 2006 Ford F550 pickup truck. He tried to avoid the collision by braking and steering to the left, but the right-front of the Ford struck the right-rear of the Suburban, police said. Troxell suffered no injuries in the accident.

It's unclear how the Suburban was placed into reverse, but mechanical failure isn't suspected as a cause in the accident, police said. No charges have been filed but police accident and abuse and neglect detectives are investigating.

The children were taken to University Medical Center, where they were treated then released.