Eight children were injured after a car suddenly crashed through a gate and plowed into a preschool classroom in Glendale, California, on Friday afternoon, turning a summer camp into a frightening emergency.
The crash happened shortly before 2 p.m. on Aug. 7 at Grandview House Preschool in the 1200 block of North Pacific Avenue.
Children attending a summer camp were inside the classroom when the vehicle came barreling into the building, according to local reports.
As police officers and firefighters rushed to the scene, the Glendale Police Department warned people to stay away from the area because of the crash and resulting traffic congestion.
Authorities initially detained the 79-year-old woman who was driving the vehicle while officers conducted a DUI investigation.
However, investigators later said they found no signs that the woman was impaired and determined the crash appeared to have been a devastating accident.
Glendale Police Sgt. Gaik Pobokhian said the driver, who had no connection to the preschool, was attempting to make a U-turn in the school parking lot when something went terribly wrong.
“During the U-turn, she accelerated, struck a parked vehicle in that lot, went through the gate and into that classroom,” Pobokhian said.
Police believe the driver mistakenly confused the gas pedal with the brake.
Witnesses described a chaotic and frightening scene as people scrambled to help the children trapped in the aftermath.
“The whole gate was on top of the kids… It was like in a horror movie. I was shocked,” Vigen Hovsepyan, who helped rescue the children, told ABC7.
Emergency crews transported eight children to a local hospital with minor injuries. All of them were later released to their parents.
No adults were injured in the crash.
The Glendale Police Department said the roadway reopened at approximately 6:30 p.m. Friday after emergency crews cleared the scene and traffic conditions returned to normal.
The investigation into the crash remains ongoing.
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