A 43-year-old Hamilton man has been charged with impaired driving after he allegedly drove onto a crowded beach in Port Dover Ont., with a minivan Saturday and nearly struck a group of unsuspecting people enjoying the summer heat, Ontario Provincial Police say.

The OPP along with fire services and paramedics were called to the scene at about 11:37 a.m. ET.

"Initial information was that the vehicle driver had struck several beachgoers," OPP Const. Ed Sanchuk told CBC News.

Bystanders took the driver out of the vehicle and held him until police arrived. (Brandon Kitchen/Facebook)

"Upon arrival, it was determined that no one had been struck or injured as a result of this incident."

Police said their investigation determined that the van drove onto the beach and reversed back onto the roadway. It then drove over sidewalk, re-entered the beach and struck a tent and several chairs in the sand.

A family with small children was nearly struck by the van, police said.

Bystanders then took the driver out of the vehicle and held him for police, Sanchuk said.

"I just also wanted to say thank you to the Good Samaritans that assisted by removing that male from the vehicle," said Sanchuk in a video posted to Twitter Sunday.

The driver, a man from Stoney Creek, Ont., was taken into custody Saturday.

Viral video

Sanchuk said there were approximately 600 people on the beach on Saturday.

Video of the incident showing a blue Dodge Caravan mounting the curb and driving onto the beach narrowly missing pedestrians quickly went viral online. In it, a man is seen pulling someone from the van's path as it rolls onto the sand.

Police say driver in custody, no one injured 0:42

"The father was aware of his surroundings, not only off the beach but on the beach, and being aware of those surroundings saved their lives," Sanchuk said.

"I can't stress the importance of making sure you're aware of your surroundings at all times, and that father did an excellent job getting his daughter out of the way."

Police said on Twitter that the driver was suspected of being "extremely intoxicated" and is facing several charges, including dangerous driving, impaired driving, driving with more than 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood and failure to comply with a probation order.

Brandon Kitchen, who caught the incident on camera, said that the sand and the beach chairs managed to slow down the van.

<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OPP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#OPP</a> arrest drunk driver after vehicle enters <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PortDover?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PortDover</a> beach. 43 yr old male facing charges. No injuries reported… <a href="https://t.co/IuQM77IEDW">https://t.co/IuQM77IEDW</a> —@OPP_WR "When he was on the ground, he was just screaming, 'All of you will pay for this,' and kept reiterating that in different forms, so it was kind of scary that way."

Kitchen said he thought the driver's actions were "intentional, just not premeditated."

The investigation into the incident is in its early stages, and police say they plan to identify the man on Sunday.

The man was being held in custody and was expected to face a bail hearing Sunday.