Ariele Thompson arrived at her Lawrenceville hair salon Wednesday to discover something wholly unexpected.
“There’s a truck in the front door,” said Thompson, owner of the Hair Parlor in Essex Plaza.
What caused the 18-wheeler to land there remains something of a mystery. The driver, Donald Samples of Snellville, died from injuries sustained in the crash, which nearly leveled Thompson’s salon and a neighboring restaurant located at 1195 Scenic Highway.
Samples, 66, was traveling northbound around 10:15 a.m. when he suddenly veered to the left, crossed the median and drove into the parking lot of Essex Plaza, police said. Investigators have yet to determine what caused Samples to lose control but say it doesn’t appear drugs or alcohol were a factor.
“It’s a miracle that no one else was hurt,” said Gwinnett County police Cpl. Edwin Ritter. The truck crashed into two businesses that were closed at the time.
Just a few doors down, a group of 4-to-12-year-old boys were participating in a karate class. Vince Davis, who owns the martial arts studio, said he noticed a “swish” roll through the parking lot, unaware it was a Kenworth T660. Davis estimated the truck was traveling around 60 mph.
“It was going so fast, I couldn’t tell what it was,” he said.
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