Crews work to remove a car that plowed into an east Vancouver house in the early morning hours on Wednesday, June 18, 2014.Photo Gallery
A motorist believed to be under the influence of synthetic marijuana crashed into an east Vancouver home Wednesday morning, driving through at least two bedrooms before coming to a stop.
No one was home at the time of the crash, reported at about 6:20 a.m. at 2514 S.E. Blairmont Drive.
The vehicle had been traveling south on Southeast Park Crest Avenue, where the road ends at Blairmont Drive in Cascade Park. The Honda Accord drove through a stop sign at the intersection and continued across Blairmont, crashing into a yellow ranch-style house, according to Vancouver police.
The car plowed through the front door and through two bedrooms, and took out one wall connecting to a third bedroom, Vancouver Fire Capt. Kevin Murray said. The vehicle stopped in a back corner bedroom.
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Firefighters cut the exterior walls of the house and removed the driver through the windows, Murray said.
The driver, Aurelio Escobar, 18, was taken to a hospital for treatment of injuries described as not life-threatening, according to police and fire officials. Escobar could face a charge of driving under the influence, Vancouver police spokeswoman Kim Kapp said.
On their way to the call, firefighters called a regional heavy rescue engine for help so responding crews could use jacks to stabilize the house.
“When a car does that much damage, it sort of teepees everything on top of it,” Murray said. Crews sifted through drywall before learning there was nobody else inside the house.
Vancouver police are investigating what caused the crash, but Sgt. Pat Johns said that the driver appears to have been under the influence of spice, a type of synthetic marijuana.
There were no skid marks or signs that the driver attempted to stop, he added.
The “man was obviously driving way too fast,” Johns said.
County records list Patricia Norris as the home’s owner.
Police closed Blairmont Drive for a few hours near the scene to allow room for firefighters and traffic investigators to work.
Neighbor Tawny Whiting said that she’s seen drivers go fast down Southeast Park Crest Drive, but “it didn’t occur to me that this could happen. …That could have been my house.”
Whiting said she was getting ready for work when she heard the crash and went outside. At first, she saw only smashed shrubs. A passing bicyclist, however, pointed out the damage and called 911.
Police said this is the second spice-related crash in the past week.
