'It felt like the house was coming down:' Car crashes into Kingston, Ont. home
When Ed Cairns woke up to a rumbling sound early Thursday morning, he thought his house was collapsing.
“I saw the mirror off my wall smash on the floor. I jumped up quickly,” he told CTV News. “I saw in the spare bedroom that the floor was gone. Collapsed. So I thought it was a sinkhole.”
It wasn’t a sinkhole. A car had crashed into the side of his house, fast enough to break through the wall and end up in the basement, coming to a stop on top of the furnace. Stone from the home’s foundation ended up on the opposite side of the house.
No one was injured in the crash, which happened around 5 a.m. at the home on Montreal Street in Kingston, Ont.
Cairns said he initially thought he was dreaming when the crash happened, but his instincts quickly took over.
“When you wake up out of a dead sleep you almost think it’s a dream right? Like, I’m thinking this has got to be a dream. This isn’t even happening. And then you realize, your senses kick in, and you go ‘I smell gas, I’ve got to get out of the house right away.”
Police say the occupants of the black 2016 Jeep Patriot fled the scene. Cairns said he heard voices in the basement and called 9-1-1, saying he thought they were trapped. But they had opened the back hatch of the vehicle and got away on foot.
It could have been a lot worse. Cairns said officials told him the car missed the main gas line by an inch. And no one was in the spare bedroom, where the floor caved in.
“If I ever have guests thats where they would stay,” Cairns said, his voice shaky. “I’m just glad my daughter wasn’t there. That wouldn’t have been good. That’s when reality hit.”
A car crashed into Ed Cairns's home on Montreal Street in Kingston on Thursday. (Kimberley Johnson/CTV News Ottawa)
Structural engineers at the scene helped extricate the vehicle from the home safely. Cairns said they remain concerned about possible collapse and are still investigating.
Montreal Street was closed from John Counter Boulevard to Railway Street "for some period of time".
Anyone with information on the collision is asked contact Kingston Police at 613-549-4660. The investigating officer, Constable Anthony Colangeli, can be reached at acolangeli@kingstonpolice.ca or via 613-549-4660 ext. 6331.
Anonymous tips can be made by calling 613-549-4660 ext. 0 and asking to remain anonymous.
- With files from Zach McGibbon, Newstalk 580 CFRA
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
opinion I've been a criminal attorney for decades. Here's what I think about the case against Trump
Joey Jackson, a criminal defence attorney and a legal analyst for CNN, outlines what he thinks about the criminal case against Donald Trump in the 'hush money trial.'
$3.8M home in B.C.'s Okanagan has steel shell for extra wildfire protection
A home in B.C.'s Okanagan that features a weathering steel shell designed to provide some protection against wildfires has been listed for sale at $3.8 million.
Diver pinned under water by an alligator figured he had choice. Lose his arm or lose his life
An alligator attacked a diver on April 15 as he surfaced from his dive, nearly out of air. His tank emptied with the gator's jaws crushing the arm he put up in defence.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
Celebrity designer sentenced to 18 months in prison for smuggling crocodile handbags
A leading fashion designer whose accessories were used by celebrities from Britney Spears to the cast of the 'Sex and the City' TV series was sentenced Monday to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty in Miami federal court on charges of smuggling crocodile handbags from her native Colombia.
Wildfire leads to evacuation order issued for northeast Alberta community
An evacuation order was issued on Monday afternoon for homes in the area of Cold Lake First Nation.