A driver is in custody after crashing a tractor-trailer into a motel in northwest Atlanta and running from the scene, officials said.
Atlanta Fire Rescue spokesman Sgt. Cortez Stafford told AJC.com that the truck went “partially” into the side of the Airway Motel in the 700 block of Fulton Industrial Boulevard on Thursday morning. There were no reports of injuries.
The “bobtail” tractor-trailer left the road, hit a parked limousine and went into the one-story building about 9:15 a.m., Atlanta police Officer Jarius Daugherty said.
Atlanta Fire on scene for a truck into a motel. Aviation Circle @ Fulton Industrial Blvd. One female was able to escape the room with no injuries. Holding E38 & T38 until truck is removed. #AFRD pic.twitter.com/ohvuyPjOSW
— Atlanta Fire Rescue (@ATLFireRescue) January 17, 2019
The driver ran but was captured nearby, police said. His identity and the charges against him have not been released.
A woman was inside the motel room where the truck hit, but she was able to escape by climbing out of a back window, Channel 2 Action News reported.
“I just started crying and screaming,” the woman, Lashonda Allen, told the news station. “I was just praying to God the semi-truck didn’t catch on fire.”
This woman is BLESSED to be alive! Wow! She was inside a motel room in northwest Atlanta this morning when a big rig crashed through her room. Hear from her at NOON on @wsbtv as she describes how she escaped without injuries pic.twitter.com/cadjxwJwj8
— Christian Jennings (@CJenningsWSB) January 17, 2019
Crews are checking the structural integrity of the building and investigating what sparked the crash.
By noon, the truck had been removed, and a gaping hole remained in the brick building.
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