WTNH
(Update) Police have concluded that the driver of a pick-up was responsible for an early Wednesday morning crash that led firefighters to rescue a woman trapped inside a Jeep that smashed into the new Elm City Market co-op on Chapel Street.
The crash occurred around 6:30 a.m.
The driver of a Dodge Ram was traveling south on State Street when he ran a red light, according to police spokesman Officer David Hartman. He hit a Jeep whose driver had been traveling west on Chapel Street.
The crash sent the Jeep “crashing and spinning” over the sidewalk on Chapel into a bus shelter, Hartman said. Then it crashed into a door and window at the Elm City Market.
The Jeep had a driver, a human passenger, and a dog inside.
WTNH reported that tenants in the adjoining 360 State Street apartment tower could feel the building shake.
The immediate concern was the female passenger pinned inside. Members of Squad Company 1, led by Lt. Greg Boivin, spent 30 – 40 minutes getting her out. Firefighters Carl DiNello, Stanley Slubowski, Jay McCarthy, and Luis Ortegon all participated in the rescue.
It was a delicate operation, said fire Capt. William Gambardella.
“She was wedged up. We had to cut her seat and drop her seat and put a long board in through the back hatchway. We pulled her through the back of the vehicle,” he said. “The guys did an excellent job getting her out of there. It was a pretty tough pin job.”
The woman was transported to Yale-New Haven Hospital, as were the two drivers, according to Gambardella. He said she had no “apparent” major injuries. The others’ injuries also appeared minor at first glance, he said.
The crash broke a window and emergency-exit door at the market, according to office manager Heather Hinckley. The SUV didn’t actually enter the main store itself, she said. The market opened up at 8 a.m. as usual, with no disruption.
“It’s a little less dramatic than first thought,” Hinckley said.
Police spokesman David Hartman said the dog was taken to the police department’s animal shelter. The crash apparently did not injure the dog, Hartman said.
The police issued the Ram driver a citation for running the red light, an infraction.
Did the dog make it to the animal shelter or was there a second dog?
I saw a dog running up state minutes after the accident scared with a collar and the small leash like the animal catchers use.
Was the dog found in east rock post accident?