Emergency responders work to free a woman trapped inside a car that crashed into a wooden storage building on Talmadge Drive late Monday night. (Daniel Purcell/Now Habersham)
The Georgia State Patrol (GSP) has charged a 23-year-old Florida driver in connection with a wreck that injured him and his passenger late last night.
Vencent Thomas Lee of Hudson, Florida and 20-year-0ld Destiny Marie Woods of Toccoa were injured when the 2014 Ford Focus they were in crashed into the side of a vacant building.
The accident happened shortly after 11 p.m. in the area of 1253 Talmadge Drive.
“God saved their lives”
John Almond of Mt. Airy lives nearby. He rushed to the scene after hearing what sounded like “three different explosions.” After seeing the damage he says it could have been worse.
“The vehicle probably traveled over 280 feet sideways, missing a power pole by two foot, went underneath the fence sideways and went at an angle face first into the building,” he says. “God saved their lives.”
Just before the crash a Habersham County deputy saw Lee’s car speed through a stop sign on Antioch Church Road. The deputy attempted to stop the car. As they approached the intersection with Talmadge Drive, the deputy clocked Lee going 88 miles per hour, according to GSP.
Lee made it through the intersection, but ran off the road a short distance later. The car he was driving traveled south on the shoulder for approximately 450 feet before crashing into the vacant building, GSP says.
Crash victims trapped
Both Lee and Woods were trapped inside wreckage.
Habersham County Emergency Services (HCES) personnel used the jaws of life to free Lee. Woods remained trapped for more than 40 minutes as crews waited on a wrecker to pull the car back so they could cut off the roof of the car to extricate her.
Both were transported to area hospitals. Their injuries did not appear to be serious, according to HCES Director Chad Black.
GSP says Lee told officers he saw the deputy’s blue lights and “could not take his foot off the gas.” He’s charged with failure to maintain lane, driving on a suspended license, and reckless driving.
