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April 17, 2008

Car smashes into store

By Jamie Jones

It was a typical Thursday afternoon for local hairdresser Rocky Brindle as she shopped for supplies at Beauty Alliance in Bry-Man’s Plaza.

Typical until she heard a cacophony of shattering glass, looked up and saw a 2007 Honda Accord pinning one of the store’s managers against a shelf. The employee, 54-year-old Krystyna Stolarski of Chatsworth, was taken to Hamilton Medical Center on a stretcher and treated for a broken leg.

Two others suffered minor injuries. A 7-year-old girl was taken to the hospital and treated for cuts to her legs. The other person injured, a female, was struck by the car but only had cuts to her legs. She was not taken to the hospital. The driver, 64-year-old Nuzhat Keen of Dalton, was not injured. Dalton Police Sgt. Chris Crossen said the victims had “non-life threatening” injuries. He said no charges are expected to be filed against Keen.

“All I saw was glass going everywhere,” Brindle said. “I didn’t know what happened. We were in the back so we didn’t see it coming. We saw the car and the lady hollering. Oh my God, it scared me to death.”

Crossen said Keen told officers she hit the gas instead of the brake while turning from a parking space onto the main roadway in front of Bry-Man’s Plaza. The incident happened shortly after 1 p.m. as the busy lunch crowd was leaving the shopping plaza.

Keen declined comment.

Bruce Satterfield with the Dalton Fire Department said employees with the city of Dalton’s Building Inspector’s Office examined the building to make sure it was structurally sound. Dalton Utilities cut power to the business.

“Pretty much what we see is cosmetic,” Satterfield said. “They’re checking to make sure there’s no wiring pulled down. They’re just checking to make sure the building is structurally safe.”

The storefront was almost completely demolished as broken glass was strewn about the walkway and business. Shelves of merchandise were knocked over. The front windows were completely shattered. Curious onlookers peeked into the business and asked others what happened. Two Dalton Fire department trucks, several command vehicles and a number of police cruisers were on the scene.

Crossen said this type of incident happens several times a year in Dalton.

“You see this from time to time when someone thinks they’re hitting the brake, but it’s actually the gas, they panic and end up pressing it harder,” he said.

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