Driver loses control of car, crashes into family’s backyard

WEST JORDAN, Utah — A car drove into a family’s backyard after accidentally hitting the gas instead of braking Wednesday afternoon.

West Jordan Sgt. Nelson Vargas said the passenger car was traveling eastbound near 3400 West and Beckford Circle at approximately 3:30 p.m.

Around 3400 West, traffic began to stop when the driver hit the accelerator instead of their brakes, causing them to lose control and turn into the nearby neighborhood.

Vargas said the driver hit some garbage cans on the corner before crashing through a fence and into a shed.

“We heard a big boom,” recalled Belen Giarrusso, who lives in the home where the driver crashed.

“The first thing we thought of was the kids getting out of school. We thought one of the kids had been hit,” said Giarrusso. “And when we came out [of the house], we saw that a car had just crashed into our backyard.”

She said the driver of the car was unconscious, and her family called 9-1-1, where first responders got him out.

“It was really scary because the crossing guard was waiting to cross people over. The school is right around the corner, and all we thought about was the kids that recently got hit, and we just think something needs to be done because this is happening too often,” Giarrusso expressed.

The driver had minor injuries and was transported to the hospital, according to Vargas. He was corporative with police, and police do not expect DUI.