Minivan crashes into school playground, ruptures water main
No one was injured when a minivan crashed into the playground of Robertson Road Elementary School on Friday afternoon, but staff and emergency crews agreed it had all the makings of a much more serious accident.
The crash occurred minutes before school let out and hundreds of children flooded the sidewalks and crosswalks.
A woman driving a Dodge Caravan north on Hammond Street reached down to get something from the floor of her car, which caused her to swerve west and cross southbound lanes, according to police.
She crashed through a chain-link fence bordering the school, dislodging a metal post that crashed through the windshield. Miraculously, it hit neither the driver nor her passenger as it shot between them and through a rear window.
The van stopped when it hit the school’s water main in front of the playground.
The main ruptured, sending thousands of gallons of water into the playground and street.
Hammond flooded and sand near the broken main gave way. The front of the Dodge slid into a sinkhole caused by the flooding.
“Obviously, it was an accident, and no accidents are good, but thank God nobody was injured,” said Robertson Road Elementary Principal Christina Dimas.
Bee staff writer Erin Tracy can be reached at etracy@modbee.com or (209) 578-2366. Follow her on Twitter @ModestoBeeCrime.
This story was originally published November 7, 2014 at 6:10 PM with the headline "Minivan crashes into school playground, ruptures water main."