Flower shop reopens after bizarre crash

Published 1:00 pm Saturday, August 12, 2006

The driver escapes with minor injuries, is glad no others were hurt.

An 81-year-old Bainbridge man says inattention and confusion caused him to crash his car through a downtown storefront Tuesday afternoon, after careening through Winslow Mall at an estimated 30 mph.

“I don’t know whether it was the gas pedal getting stuck, but all of a sudden my foot was on the gas pedal,” said Fred Brewis from his home Thursday. “I don’t know what happened. I was getting out for a haircut and, all of a sudden, boom.”

Brewis was ferried to Harborview Hospital in Seattle with minor cuts and scrapes. He was later cited by Bainbridge police for negligent driving, a non-criminal offense.

No one else was injured.

By Thursday, Flowering Around had reopened with a large board blocking the empty window frame.

Despite a mess of broken pottery shards, strewn flowers and glass, Flowering Around co-owner Ashley Henry predicted her insurance would cover much of the estimated $20,000 in damages.

“It doesn’t seem that bad, even though the front’s ruined,” she said as onlookers snapped photos of her storefront. “It’ll be fine. We want to sweep up and move on.”

Henry’s father and Flowering Around co-owner, Mark Henry, shared his daughter’s optimism.

“It’s great,” he said. “Now we have a drive-through flower shop.”

Witnesses said Brewis appeared dazed as he popped a curb, plowed through large flower pots and sideswiped a restaurant’s outdoor seating deck.

His 2000 Toyota Solara traveled 90 feet before crashing through Flowering Around’s large south-facing display window. The car came to a stop against the north wall, just after one of the shop’s owners jumped out of the way.

“I heard some noise and people yelling, but I didn’t see it until it was coming through the window right in front of me,” Ashley Henry said. “I jumped. It was coming right at me. I’m quick on my feet. I grabbed the phone, called 911 and waited to see if the ceiling was going to come crashing down.

“Then I went through the smoke and climbed out the window. It’s amazing no one was hit.”

The car narrowly missed lunch-time customers at Teriyaki Town restaurant and numerous shoppers in the outdoor plaza.

Other witnesses told police they saw no brake lights as the car appeared to travel at “full throttle,” Police Detective Scott Anderson said.

“It appears the driver pushed the accelerator rather than the brake,” Anderson said. “It’s not uncommon to have elderly drivers believe their foot’s on the brake, so they push harder. Usually they hit something pretty quick. It’s rare for them to travel 100 feet.”

Damage to other mall businesses was estimated at “thousands of dollars,” police said.

The incident could have been much worse, said witnesses at the scene on Tuesday.

Terri Bryant, co-owner of Dana’s Showhouse, was sitting on a mall bench when she saw the car rolling toward her.

“I was just doing paperwork, ordering cards for the store, when I heard the customers at Teriyaki Town screaming,” she said. “One guy told me to get out of the way. Then I heard the engine and the car hitting the flower pots and then I saw the car. It was heading pretty straight. I got out of the way. It passed me by no more than three feet.”

Flowering Around’s north wall prevented the car from reaching the neighboring boutique, Blinx.

“I didn’t see it, but I heard it and smelled it,” said clerk Margie Storch. “I heard all the yelling and screaming and the crash and then (smelled) all the smoke.”

The impact of the car “sounded like a bomb going off” said Ken Playter, manager of the Subway sandwich shop on the mall’s second story. “People were yelling, ‘Oh my god!’ and there was a lot of screaming. It was pretty scary.”

The Bainbridge Island Fire Department received its first call at 12:41 p.m. and dispatched three emergency vehicles. Police closed much of Winslow Way.

Brewis on Thursday said he suffered only “a couple cuts.”

“It’s miraculous,” he said.

Brewis complained of back discomfort, but said that had more to do with his medical treatment than the crash.

“My back hurts, but that’s about it,” he said. “I spent seven and a half hours laying on a board at Harborview.”

Brewis said he was relieved to learn no one else was hurt.

“It’s very fortunate, and I’m happy no one was injured in the accident,” he said.