Dump truck crashes through apartment building in Pacoima

PACOIMA, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A dump truck slammed into an apartment building in Pacoima Tuesday afternoon, with nearly half the vehicle ending up lodged into the structure.

While the crash took out a large chunk of the building, luckily there were only three minor injuries reported.

But firefighters who initially responded to the scene had to work quickly to determine if anyone was inside. Using specialized equipment, they tore open the wall of the building and climbed inside to sift through the wreckage.

Surveillance video from a nearby home shows a dump truck smashing into a car just before it slams into an apartment building in Pacoima.

After the search, firefighters learned that a resident of the building who was initially described as missing was at work and safe at the time of the crash.

A grandmother, about 69 years old, who had been inside the building at the time of the crash had only minor injuries and was brought to a local hospital to be checked out. Her two granddaughters were playing outside and were not injured.

Witnesses described hearing a loud crash and seeing a scene of confusion and scattered debris afterward.

"My thoughts were the kids were in there because I could hear the grandma screaming, 'Get the kids, get the kids.' I didn't see no kids, I just saw her," said witness Romero Gutierrez.

The crash happened around 4:30 p.m. in the 12000 block of Brandford Street.

Surveillance video shows the dump truck slamming into a car that was making a left turn in its path before the truck crashed into the building.

Investigators are looking into exactly what happened.

The male driver of the truck, about 40 years old, had just a minor cut to his arm and declined medical transport. The woman who was driving the sedan involved in the crash, approximately age 50, had minor injuries and was transported to a hospital.

Water and gas service to the building were also shut off as a precaution.

Several units of the building were red-tagged and even residents of undamaged units were supposed to stay elsewhere for the night as building and safety officials examined the structural integrity of the building.