Driver Mistakes Gas For Brake, Overturns SUV While Trying To Park

SANDY SPRINGS, GA -- A Sandy Springs motorist escaped serious injury after overturning her vehicle while trying to park at the Kroger shopping center Thursday afternoon.

Officers with the Sandy Springs Police Department responded to the accident around 1:08 p.m. April 6 at 8331 Roswell Road, which is at the corner of Northridge Road.

Officers arrived in the Kroger parking lot to find a white Mercedes SUV resting on the driver's side. The driver, an 87-year-old woman, was still positioned in the driver's seat and was conscious and alert on the scene.

According to an accident report released by the Sandy Springs Police Department, Sandy Springs Fire-Rescue firefighters responded to the scene to remove the woman from the car.

The woman told police she was pulling into the parking space "when she hit the gas instead of the brake." After that mishap, she struck a second vehicle involved in the collision, which caused her vehicle to overturn on its side.

After it was hit by the Mercedes, the second vehicle was pushed into a third vehicle parked nearby.

The woman suffered a laceration to her left hand, but refused medical transport by EMS, the report indicates. The Mercedes sustained damage to the front passenger side while the second vehicle received damage to its passenger side. The third vehicle was damaged on its rear passenger side.

There were initial reports that witnesses ran up to the Mercedes and began to steal items from the vehicle at the time of the collision. However, Sandy Springs police spokesperson Sgt. Sam Worsham said those reports have been determined to be false.

Image via Sandy Springs Police/Capt. Steve Rose