UPDATED with a statement from Verizon
FOND DU LAC, Wis. (WBAY) – Several people were injured, one critically, when a car hit a Verizon store in Fond du Lac. The driver is suspected of OWI.
According to Fond du Lac Fire Rescue, at around 12:25 p.m. Thursday, Fond du Lac Fire Rescue responded Verizon at 467 N. Rolling Meadows Drive for a vehicle that struck the building. Police said the car crashed through the southwest outer wall of the store.
Police said the vehicle, driven by a 20-year-old Oakfield man, was northbound on N. Rolling Meadows Drive when his car left the roadway just north of the Walmart parking lot. The car traveled approximately 300 feet through parts of a terrace and parts of the PetSmart/Dollar Tree parking lot before jumping over the curb in the Verizon parking lot and smashing through the glass walls into Verizon’s showroom.
When emergency crews arrived, they found the vehicle had fully entered the building at a high rate of speed. Several customers were inside the Verizon store at the time of the crash, police said. The City of Fond du Lac Fire/Rescue attended to four victims inside the store.
“We have quite a few vehicles that strike buildings, but we usually never encounter this many injuries on a scene like this,” Battalion Chief Jim Wamser said.
Fond du Lac Fire/Rescue ultimately transported a 30-year-old man, 23-year-old man, and 49-year-old woman to St. Agnes Hospital (SSM Health) with non-life-threatening injuries. Theda Star medical helicopter was requested for transport of a 29-year-old woman with what are believed to be life-threatening injuries.
The 20-year-old driver was also transported by Fond du Lac Fire/Rescue to St. Agnes Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
“Initial crews on scene did an excellent job. They triaged the patients. They determined the numbers that were injured. They determined that one was critically injured and the others were less severely injured and that helped me bring the needed resources to the scene,” Wamser said.
The 20-year-old was the only person in the car. He was arrested for Operating While Impaired Causing Great Bodily Harm (Felony) and was assessed by a Fond du Lac County Sheriff Deputy Drug Recognition Expert.
Wamser added, “Not only the people that were injured, but it was a busy store. There were a lot of other people in the store, and they saw that accident happen, and they have to go home and deal with that too even though they weren’t injured. There were a lot of witnesses in that store, and I’m sure they’re having a difficult night tonight. Our thoughts are with them as well.”
Verizon provided Action 2 News with a statement Friday:
First and foremost, our hearts go out to those who were injured in yesterday’s crash. And we are grateful to the local first responders, who responded quickly to the incident and assisted our customers and employees. Today our teams are assessing the damage, with safety remaining our top priority. After that we will have an estimate on how long repairs will take,”
Verizon encourages customers to use other stores or contact customer service in the meantime. The My Verizon app’s Video Call feature will connect callers in Fond du Lac to team members in Oshkosh.
Fond du Lac Fire Rescue was assisted by Theda Star Helicopter, North Fond du Lac Ambulance, City of Fond du Lac Police, Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Department, and Wisconsin State Patrol.
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Driver arrested for OWI after car crashes into Fond du Lac store – WBAY
