Two injured in high speed crash through a Mass Street storefront
Updated: 11:48 p.m.
Lawrence Police and Fire Medical crews responded on a serious car accident in the 1000 block of Massachusetts Street early Saturday morning.
Crews were called about 3:10 a.m. on reports of a vehicle crashed through a storefront near 1029 Massachusetts Street, Pyramid Pizza.
Police arrived quickly and immediately reported injuries at 1025 Massachusetts Street, Strong’s Antiques. Fire units arrived to confirm that one person was pinned in the vehicle and would need to be extricated. A second person was ejected from the vehicle.
Both people have serious injuries, including long bone (arms/legs) fractures.
A LifeStar helicopter picked up the driver of the vehicle at the Liberty Memorial Central Middle School landing zone. This person was only described as a 37-year-old male. He was reportedly thrown from the vehicle in the crash and suffered a possible head injury.
The second injured person, said to be a 22-year-old female, was transported by ground after being extricated from the vehicle. Medics reported that she was “extremely combative.”
Both injured people were transported to the University of Kansas hospital in Kansas City, Kansas.
Police believe the accident was a “high speed crash.” There were no reports of anyone inside the lower level of the building when the crash occurred.
Gary Strong, owner of Strong’s Antiques, tells my news partners at the Lawrence Journal-World that the vehicle was traveling north on Massachusetts Street at high speeds when it struck a concrete planter in front of his store.
Strong says the crash damaged his storefront along with glassware and antiques inside. The car’s motor flew through the building in the crash and landed on a Steinway piano inside.
The residents of 1025.5 Massachusetts Street reported a smoke odor inside their apartment following the accident. Firefighters responded to that upstairs apartment and were able to determine that there was no fire. The residents were kept out of the building as a precaution, until the structural integrity of the building could be confirmed.
Police report damaged windows and railings at neighboring businesses and significant damage to a concrete planter.
Due to the large response from Lawrence Fire Medical crews, some off-duty personnel were called in to staff reserve units and handle other calls throughout the city. Lawrence Police held over their late swing shift officers to help with the accident and handling other calls for service. Those officers were allowed to go off-duty around 4:30 a.m..
Check back with this report for updates as they become available.
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