New Jersey

NJ Families Rocked Awake After Driver Sails Into Front Porch

Photo shared by family shows car crashed into the front porch of a residential building.

Families living in Milltown were treated to a rude awakening Saturday morning when a driver plowed into the front porch attached to their quadplex.

Je-Ree Olenik lives in the four unit building on Main Street, now without a front porch. Her family was shaken awake when a driver crashed into the building around 4 a.m.

"We heard a loud crash and we felt the house shake a little bit," Olenik said, describing the start of a wild night.

The New Jersey woman lives in the top floor unit with her husband and daughter. When they looked outside and saw a utility pole on the front lawn, they knew something was wrong.

After fire and police personnel arrived, all residents of the building were asked to evacuate while investigators checked the stability of the structure and the car was removed from the front porch.

Everyone waited several hours outside for crews to finish up the work and deem the building safe to return to, which took roughly four hours, Olenik said. During that time, a neighbor walked by and offered everyone food.

Milltown Police could not immediately provide details of the incident on Sunday.

Olenik, meanwhile, believes the driver could have been under the influence.

"It was just clear, going that fast in a residential street that he was not in his right state of mind to take out a utility pole and then crash into someone's front porch," she said.

Hours after the crash, the front porch and roof were removed along with the car but no additional damage had been made to the residence.

Copyright NBC New York
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