2 Injured In Strip Mall Crash In Lemon Grove

UPDATE:

LEMON GROVE, CA – Two people suffered apparently minor injuries Wednesday when an out-of-control sedan turned an East County nail salon into a makeshift carport.

The late-morning vehicle-vs.-structure crash in Lemon Grove was one of two strikingly similar accidents to occur nearly simultaneously at San Diego- area strip malls, according to fire department officials.

It happened about 10 a.m., when a woman lost control of the compact Toyota sedan she was driving in a parking lot in the 7100 block of Broadway, said Mark Casey, a battalion chief and spokesman for Heartland Fire & Rescue.

The car plowed into the front of T's Nails, a small manicurist's shop near a liquor store and an insurance office, smashing through the glass facade of the business and coming to a halt fully inside.

A person who had been inside the shop at the time of the crash was treated at the scene for minor injuries, as was the driver. Medics then took the latter to a hospital for further evaluation.

The wreck appeared to have caused minimal structural damage, according to Casey. It was unclear what caused it, though alcohol seemingly was not involved, he said.

A few minutes before the accident occurred and about 10 miles to the south, a car careened out of a parking lot at a Chula Vista strip mall and smashed its way inside a Dollar Tree discount store. The crash in the 900 block of Otay Lakes Road caused no reported injuries or serious structural damage, authorities said.

By City News Service

LEMON GROVE, CA – A car crashed into a strip mall Wednesday in Lemon Grove.

Heartland Fire & Rescue crews have responded to the single-story strip mall in the 7200 block of Broadway, where the car has "caused significant damage to the structure," according to fire officials. Building Department officials are en route to evaluate and secure the building.

Fire officials asked the public to avoid the area for two hours.

No other information was immediately available.