Pickup truck blasts right through house in Downers Grove
DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. (CBS) -- A pickup truck plowed right through a house Friday afternoon in Downers Grove.
As CBS 2's Marissa Perlman reported Friday night, the couple living in the house was in the basement when the crash happened. They were uninjured, in what neighbors called a miracle.
But the homeowners were visibly shaken as they packed up their car and left in the hours after the accident. They cannot stay in the house.
The vehicle slammed right through the house at 66th Street and Briargate Drive in Downers Grove and went on to hit a tree near a backyard swimming pool and children's playhouse.
The front and rear exterior load-bearing walls were blown right out into the backyard, along with the contents of the rooms inside. A seemingly endless trail of debris was left behind.
"I think it's one of those things where you're just, did that just happen?" said Mickey Bravo.
Bravo lives next door. He said a loud crash woke him up just after 4 p.m.
From his backyard, he watched as the pickup truck that smashed through the house was hauled away. The front of the truck was left a mashed-up mess.
"I did not realize the extent of the damage until I walked out on my deck and started seeing more and more and more and more," Bravo said.
Downers Grove police said the driver of the pickup was having a medical emergency. As he turned onto Briargate Drive, he drove straight into the house and through the back.
Repair work was already under way Friday night, but an entire wing of the house was destroyed. Neighbors called it a miracle that everyone involved made it out OK.
"I'm just grateful no one was sitting there in that living room," said Rosa Garcia.
"Is anyone 100 percent safe from anything? Not really!" added Bravo. "This, I imagine, shook them to their core."
The house is not livable.
The driver and his passenger, a woman, were taken to the hospital and are expected to recover.
The homeowners say they are staying at a hotel until they figure out what's next.
