Three injured after car strikes building in downtown Three Rivers

(Photo courtesy of Mike Curtis and Lisa DeVine)

A blue Dodge Charger struck a building in downtown Three Rivers early Saturday morning, causing substantial damage to the structure and injuries to the car’s three occupants. The driver of the vehicle was airlifted to an area hospital, while the two passengers were treated for their injuries at Three Rivers Health.

Officers from the Three Rivers Police Department and members of the Three Rivers Fire Department arrived at the scene a little after 3 a.m. on Saturday. Upon arrival officers found the driver and one passenger outside of the vehicle, and a third passenger trapped inside the Charger. All sustained injuries in the crash, with alcohol believed to have been a factor.

The crash itself caused significant damage to an apartment entrance/stairwell between PinUp Salon and World Fare, narrowly avoiding both storefronts but causing structural damage on either side of the car’s impact.

Downtown resident Rob Vander-Giessen Rietsma, who lives above World Fare, said he didn’t think there was a lot of damage to World Fare itself but “we’re having someone look to see the extent of the structural damage to the brick column to the right of the (storefront’s) window.”

Alek Haak-Frost is executive editor and publisher of Watershed Voice.