Elderly woman crashes vehicle into store fronts

The stores’ owner said they are still open for business.

By JEANNE STARMACK

VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER

CANFIELD — A car plowed about 10 feet through the doors of two businesses before stopping in a strip mall in Canfield on Thursday afternoon.

No one was injured in the 2:30 p.m. accident at Always Yours and Tickets Unlimited in the Hilltop Plaza on U.S. Route 224, said Robert Tieche, fire chief of the Joint Cardinal Fire District.

Bob Hudock, a co-owner of both businesses, said three people were in the stores when the accident happened — himself, his 9-year-old son and a Tickets Unlimited employee.

He was behind the counter at the opposite end of the store from where the car barreled in, he said. His son and the employee were at the back of the store.

Hudock’s wife, Paula, drove up and saw the car inside the store, but her husband called her on her cell phone to let her know no one was hurt, she said.

Tieche said an elderly woman was driving the car. He did not release her name, saying the department’s report was not finished.

Canfield Police also would not release the woman’s name or give any other details, also saying their report wasn’t finished.

The accident

Hudock said the driver is familiar to him because she often comes to the plaza. He said she pulled up into a space in front of his store and then kept going.

He said that after the accident, he and the others were trapped in the store.

“We were yelling at people from outside. Someone got her to shut the car off,” he said.

She wasn’t injured, and witnesses said they were amazed that the woman’s car had very little damage.

Hudock, who was cleaning up at the store Thursday afternoon, said there’s been significant damage to his inventory at Always Yours. The store does picture framing and sells artwork. He didn’t venture an estimate of his losses.

He said that he considers both businesses still open and that they may set up in a temporary space. There is a space available at the plaza, he said.

Tickets Unlimited is an entertainment service that finds customers tickets for nationwide events. The stores have been at the plaza since 1988.