HALLOWELL — An elderly woman suffered minor injuries after she drove her sport utility vehicle through her garage’s back wall Monday afternoon, sending both her and car plummeting at least 10 feet to the ground below.

Rescue officials said they were called to a house at 100 Town Farm Road around 3:15 p.m. The home had structural damage where the garage met the other part of the house, as well as obvious damage to the garage.

Hallowell Fire Chief Jim Owens said the woman hit the gas instead of the brake when entering her garage, driving through the garage door, breaking it, and through the back wall of the garage. Because the house and the garage are built into a hill, the vehicle fell 10 to 12 feet.

“The car was nosed into the ground with her still in it (when rescue arrived),” Owens said. “(The fall) was long enough that the car nosed into the ground and the car stayed up on the house.”

Owens said the woman complained of minor chest pain from the seat belt restraining her at an unnatural angle.

“She was at a good 80-degree angle,” he said.

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Owens said he had never seen an incident like this, which resulted mainly from the placement of the garage.

“I’ve seen cars go into swimming pools (after crashing through garages),” he said. “It was not our normal call.”

A tow truck, equipped with a plow, plowed a path through the snow so the car could be taken up to the driveway. Despite the fall, damage to the vehicle was minor; the car was pulled from the garage by a tow truck and driven onto a flatbed to be taken away for any necessary repairs.

“I don’t think it’s totaled,” Owens said. “They had four tow trucks there trying to figure out what to do.”

Owens did not know how much any repairs would cost. He said a contractor would make any estimates on damage to the garage.

Sam Shepherd — 621-5666

sshepherd@centralmaine.com

Twitter: @SamShepME


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