The 74-year-old driver was trying to reverse the car.
By Raif Karerat
A sport utility vehicle driven by a 74-year-old woman careened into the front of a southeast Houston supermarket, killing a mother who was shopping with her daughter and sister and injuring five other people.
The crash occurred at 1:40 p.m. Monday at the H-E-B supermarket at Houston’s Gulfgate Center, reported CBS News. Police spokesman Kese Smith said the woman had put her SUV in reverse to back up from a handicapped parking spot, but accelerated directly into the store. Police are currently unclear on why the vehicle crashed into the supermarket.
“It was like a bowling pin because there were like 15 people around the front,” shopper Fred Davis told CBS affiliate KHOU. “I’m coming right down the aisle, right down the aisle and then the car just burst through,” he continued.
Two employees were treated for minor injuries at the scene and five customers were transported to local hospitals. A 31-year-old woman died at Memorial Hermann Hospital, reported the Houston Chronicle, while her sister and 2-year-old daughter were being treated for minor injuries.
The condition of the other victims wasn’t immediately known.
Police stated the driver is cooperating with their investigation and said she didn’t appear to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol. So far, no charges have been filed.