CVS reopens Friday after minivan crashes into building

LACONIA — A driver accidentally crashed her minivan into CVS Pharmacy on Union Avenue Wednesday afternoon, and while there were no injuries, it forced the business to close until Friday.

Police and fire personnel responded to a 911 call about a vehicle hitting CVS Pharmacy at 4:40 p.m. on June 24, according to Police Capt. Allan Graton. Officers arrived one minute later, and Graton said the initial report showed a 97-year-old driver’s foot appeared to have slipped, but did not remember what happened.

Fire Chief Tim Joubert said he and Deputy Chief Louis Loutrel responded, along with an engine and an ambulance. First responders evaluated the driver for injuries, and while they were shaken up, no transportation to a hospital was required.

“It was just an accident, that’s all there was,” Joubert said.

Joubert said these incidents happen more often than you might think, as Laconia Fire responds to calls for two to three vehicles accidentally hitting buildings per year. He said often when something like this happens, the incident can be startling, and the driver will keep their foot on the accelerator, creating extra force.

After evaluating the driver and confirming they were OK, firefighters stepped into their risk reduction and prevention role. Joubert said the vehicle created some damage to the storefront, so they told management the store needed to be closed until the building was evaluated by a structural engineer. Joubert said this was completed, and the store was approved to be opened back up on Thursday.

Joubert said the damage was to an exterior wall, it was unclear where utilities in the building run through, so the closure was mainly precautionary.

“We wanted to make sure it was safe to the public and their employees,” Joubert said.

Damage to the building appears to have been to the brick area at the bottom of the exterior of the building facing the intersection, with some bricks fallen to the ground. Along with the crunched brick section of the wall, there was damage to some of the siding above. Emergency tape wrapped around the building to block people from the damaged area after the accident.

The front end of vehicle, a red Chrysler minivan, was heavily damaged, with most of the bumper ripped off. The vehicle was towed from the scene, according to Graton. Police cleared the scene at 5:24 p.m.

Joubert commended the staff at CVS for promptly evacuating the store. Jeffrey Crowell-Gregoire, store manager, said the store had reopened at about 2 p.m. on Friday. He was happy to say there were no injuries.

“It just had to get clearance from an engineer that there was no structural damage,” Crowell-Gregoire said. “It wasn’t really that bad, but just needed the clearance that everyone will be safe.”