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Car bashes into house, but no one home is hurt


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POSTED: Friday, January 02, 2009

Three Foster Village residents started the new year off with a 4,000-pound luxury sedan banging down their front door.

;[Preview] Car Crashes Into House
;[Preview]
 

Luckily no one was injured when a car smadhed in a house in Foster Village.

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Shortly before noon, a Mercedes-Benz jumped the curb, traveled across the lawn, and cleared three steps to crash through the front door of 4403 Halupa St. The car stopped with its front half inside the house.

No one was injured, said Bryan Cheplic, Department of Emergency Services spokesman.

Honolulu Fire Capt. Terry Seelig said a woman in her 80s was the only occupant of the car. She was already out of the car when firefighters arrived.

Jesus Tanega, 81, owns the rental house but lives in another home he owns on the same block. He was home when he received a call about the accident. He drove to the scene and saw about half of his house's facade demolished, his tiles crushed, and the front door obliterated. Tanega said he didn't know how much the repairs would cost and added that the car lost its windshield.

“;Nothing you can do,”; he said. “;How it got there, I'll never know.”;

; The three tenants were eating lunch in the kitchen when the car dropped in, Tanega said. They will stay there, but have to use the back door for now, he said.

Tanega, a retired chief petty officer in the Navy, was unruffled by the crash.

“;I'm used to this,”; said Tanega, who added that he is a veteran of World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars. “;I've seen more than that happen in my lifetime.”;

Seelig said firefighters determined the house was still stable.