WASHINGTON CITY – Two people are “very fortunate” to have escaped injury after a structural beam crashed through the windshield of their vehicle.
Panic and mistaking the gas pedal for the brake caused the incident, Washington City Police Chief Jim Keith said at the scene.
Around 2:25 p.m. in the Winter Haven RV and mobile home park, an elderly woman had just gotten her mail from the cluster of mail boxes in the center of the retired community. She then got back into her Honda SUV and engaged in a U-turn, Keith said.
While making the U-turn the woman put her foot on the gas pedal instead of the brake.
“She panicked (and) the gas stayed on,” Keith said.
The SUV would end up catching the corner of one trailer’s driveway awning and bending it before taking out the support of another trailer’s driveway awning.
This caused the second awning to collapse on the SUV, sending a structural beam smashing through the windshield – and between the driver and her passenger.
The two are “very fortunate” there were “no injuries at all,” Keith said.
Washington City Police and Fire units responded to the scene and began to clear it out by 3:40 p.m.
This report is based on preliminary information provided by emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
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The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
The driver of an SUV mistook the gas pedal for the brake while making a U-turn and ended by taking out a support beam for a driveway awning. This resulted in the awning's collapse onto the SUV and its main structural beam crashing through the vehicle's windshield. Neither the driver nor passenger were harmed in the incident, Washington City, Utah, March 24, 2017 | Photo by Mori Kessler, St. George News
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Twitter: @MoriKessler
Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2017, all rights reserved.
She might want to take a stroll to the mailbox next time? Hey it’s nice weather, take a walk
She might want to give up her drivers license.
I wonder if some of these accidents are caused by driving with both feet? Might be safer to use one foot. (motor skill accidental cross-over)
I guess I’ve always wanted to see a Pronto Pup Honda.
The ‘aging’ population . . . another candidate for Uber & Google’s self driving cars .
( the alcohol / party crowd is another logical market for them )