Hollywood star Jeremy Renner thanked fans for their love and support in his first social media post following the snow ploughing accident over the weekend.

The 51-year-old actor shared a selfie of his bruised face from the hospital bed on Instagram Tuesday evening.

"Thank you all for your kind words. I'm too messed up now to type. But I send love to you all," Renner, who continues to be in the intensive care unit of a local hospital, wrote in the brief post.

The two-time Oscar nominee had sustained "blunt chest trauma and orthopedic injuries" while trying to clear the snow around his personal vehicle.

Earlier on Tuesday, Samantha Mast, the actor's publicist, shared more details about the accident that occurred near his home in Reno, Nevada on New Year's Day. He was airlifted on Sunday and underwent a surgery the next day.

Renner was moving snow from a private driveway, so that his family members could depart his residence after they celebrated the holidays together, Mast was quoted as saying by news website CNN. The actor's family members were with him when the accident occurred, his representative added.

During a press conference, the local sheriff said the actor was run over by his snowcat -- a truck-sized vehicle designed to move on snow -- after the machine started to roll away when he was not in the driver's seat. He was injured during an attempt to get back into the snowcat.

Renner was allowed to operate the snowcat as he was on a private road that was shared by his neighbours and not maintained by the county, said Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam.

The Reno area received around 6-12 inches of snow at elevations below 5,000 feet between New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, and up to 18 inches at higher elevations, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.

"He was being a great neighbour and he was ploughing those roads for his neighbour," Balaam further said.

The "Hawkeye" star, who is "stable but critical", was making positive progress, his spokesperson had later said in a new statement.

"(He) is awake, talking and in good spirits. He remains in ICU in critical but stable condition. He is overwhelmed by the showing of love and support. The family asks for your continued thoughts while he heals with his close loved ones," Mast added.

Cine personalities such as Renner's fellow Marvel star Mark Ruffalo and "Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol" co-star Anil Kapoor sent their best wishes to the actor.

"Prayers up for our brother @jeremyrenner on a full and speedy recovery. Please send healing goodness his way," Ruffalo posted on his Instagram Stories.

"Praying for your speedy recovery Jeremy @jeremyrenner," wrote Kapoor on his Instagram Stories.

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