REDWOOD CITY (BCN) — A Redwood City apartment building was deemed unsafe to enter after an SUV crashed into it Friday morning, a police sergeant said.
However, building officials may allow some residents to return home if a PG&E crew is sure the utilities in some units were not damaged, police Sgt. Ed Conover said.
At about 10:15 a.m., the SUV crashed into the building’s garage at 512 Chestnut St., between Middlefield Road and Stambaugh Street.
Every resident was evacuated after the crash because the entire building was deemed structurally unsound. Even if some residents are allowed to go home, residents of the apartments above the garage will have to find temporary housing, Conover said.
The San Mateo Urban Search and Rescue Team responded to shore up the building so residents could go back in to get some of their belongings.
The driver of the SUV suffered minor to moderate injuries and was taken to a hospital, Redwood City fire Battalion Chief Dan Abrams said.
The driver did not appear to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol, Conover said.
None of the building’s residents were hurt and the American Red Cross will be helping all of the residents whose homes are deemed unsafe to live in, Conover said.
At least one family, a family of three who lives in the front apartment, has been displaced.
The area was closed to traffic after the crash but is expected to open again at 3:30 p.m. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
Witnesses who saw it happen said the truck was not driving recklessly. They said it was stopped and then had a sudden acceleration into the building.
The cause of the crash is under investigation. The driver of the SUV may have suffered a medical emergency before the crash, police Lt. Sean Hart said.