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Woodbury SUV crash triggers gas leak, forces 16 townhomes to evacuate
Neighbors in Woodbury were forced out of their homes late Saturday night after an SUV crashed into multiple town homes, causing a gas leak and widespread damage. FOX 9's Leon Purvis has the story.
WOODBURY, Minn. (FOX 9) - Neighbors in Woodbury were forced out of their homes late Saturday night after an SUV crashed into multiple town homes, causing a gas leak and widespread damage.
SUV crashes into multiple homes, causing gas leak and evacuations
What we know:
Neighbors say they heard a loud boom just before 11 p.m. Saturday as many were getting ready for bed.
Christine Earls, whose town home was hit, said, "I thought lightning hit my house. It looked like a disaster."
When she went downstairs, she saw her wall was split in two. Police say the SUV broke a gas meter when it crashed into the first townhome, causing a significant natural gas leak.
"I saw and smelled a tremendous amount of natural gas leaking out of my fireplace, so I went and grabbed my son and ran out of the house as quick as I could," said Earls.
Sixteen town homes in the neighborhood between Tamarack Road and Interstate 94 were evacuated as a precaution. The SUV did not stop after hitting the first home.
"They were able to pull out, drive down the street, and hit two other homes," said Earls.
Neighbors describe the damage, aftermath
What they're saying:
Michael Bullerman, who lives next door, described the path of the SUV.
"He went up on the berm, there sideswiped that utility box, came back down, went over to the right side of the road, where that white van is, swerved back to the left side of the road."
Another neighbor, Brenda Kavanagh, said, "They took out another light pole down the street, and then they also took out another big electric box down there before crashing into the two other town homes."
Everyone who was evacuated was eventually allowed back home, except for those living in the three homes that were hit. The American Red Cross is helping those who cannot return to their homes.
Earls said the neighborhood is usually quiet.
"I've lived there for two years, and my dad owned it before me, and he had lived there for 15 years, probably," said Earls. When asked if anything like this had happened before, she said, "No, I've never seen anything like this. It's shocking."
Police say the driver of the SUV was taken to the hospital, but no one else was hurt.
What we don't know:
Police have not yet said what caused the driver to crash into the town homes. The condition of the driver and when the three damaged homes will be safe to re-enter are also unknown.