Driver: ‘I wasn’t paying attention’
Jared Johnson
By Kevin Spradlin
PeeDeePost.com
ELLERBE — It could have been worse.
A 30-year-old Pinehurst man was able to walk to a FirstHealth EMS ambulance under his own power early Wednesday afternoon after his Ford Mustang crashed into Sissy’s Pet Grooming at about 1 p.m. on Main Street in Ellerbe.
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
Jared Johnson said the roof of the building collapsed after he exited his vehicle.
“It didn’t look that bad” initially, said Johnson, who declined transport to a hospital and appeared physically uninjured despite the incident. “I wasn’t paying attention.”
When pressed what he was focused on, Johnson said, “not the road, evidently.”
Eric Phifer said he was driving his Big K work truck through town and noticed the Ford Mustang in traffic. He watched as the vehicle approached the intersection of Ledbetter Road and Main Street.
“He didn’t brake or nothing,” Phifer said. “I’m glad no one was in the building.”
Meanwhile, business owner Angela “Sissy” Davis, two months shy of marking her first year in business, was one part in shock and the other part thankful. The business operates three days a week, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
Davis said she did not have business insurance on the property, owned by J & S Wholesale and Rentals in Asheboro. She estimated the loss of her business-related equipment at about $6,000. Davis said business was booming.
“I had about 200 clients,” Davis said.
Kevin Spradlin | PeeDeePost.com
Rescue personnel from Ellerbe Rescue Squad, Ellerbe Volunteer Fire Department, the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, FirstHealth EMS and North Carolina Highway Patrol responded to the scene, as did Duke Energy and Joe’s Towing.
