A bank remains closed Saturday, one day after a Jeep Cherokee crashed through its doors, sending two employees to the hospital, police said. Continue reading after the jump.
Police and firefighters, responding to a call of a crash with entrapment at about 3:02 p.m. Thursday at a Harris Bank branch, 1951 Plum Grove Road, found the driver of the Jeep trapped inside the vehicle from debris that blocked her from getting out, said Cmdr. Thomas Calcagno, who responded to the crash.
“The woman was pulling into the bank, and her foot slipped off the brake pedal and on the gas,†the commander said. “The (SUV) went through the front doors. It tore down the two, exterior doors and the two leading into the lobby. Fortunately, there was no one standing in front of the teller counter.â€
However, two women tellers, were behind the counter. The SUV did not hit the women, Calcagno said. But, one teller, he said, “was saved by a cabinet, preventing the vehicle from landing on her.â€
She was knocked to the ground by the counter. She was taken with injuries not considered life threatening to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights. The other woman was “shaken†and after some hesitation decided to be taken to the same hospital to be looked over, he said. Their conditions were not immediately available.
“She literally went right through the foyer. It could have been considerably worse,†Calcagno said.
The driver, a 68-year-old woman from Palatine was removed from the vehicle and checked over by paramedics at the scene.
“She was uninjured and shaken,†he said.
She was not cited in the crash.
“This was a private property accident,†Calcagno said. “There was no indication of any impairment – alcohol or drugs.â€
The power to the bank branch that sustained structural damage to the building had been immediately turned off. A Rolling Meadows building inspector also responded to the crash to determine if the building is structurally sound.
