HICKSVILLE (WABC) -- One person was hurt after a two-car accident sent one of the vehicles crashing into the bedroom of a home in Hicksville, Long Island Monday.
"He came across two yards, hit the shed and came inside my house," said Joanna Vidad, still shaken as she looked at the damage to her home, realizing what could have happened.
Her teenage daughter could have easily been mowed down by the SUV.
"I was sitting on the sofa in the living room. Then I heard something very loud. I didn't know what was going on because of all of the smoke in the house," said Vidad. "I knew my daughter was upstairs. So she yelled 'I can't get down, there's no staircase.'"
Fortunately a quick-thinking neighbor propped up a 20 foot ladder to get the trapped teen out of the home on Blueberry Lane.
According to police, the Jeep was struck from behind by another Jeep around noon and crushed a fence, smashed a shed, then busted through the back of the home, ripping down a staircase and destroying a bedroom.
The driver, 73-year old John Broschart, lives just across the street and has been charged with Driving While Intoxicated. His wife would only say he's recovering in the hospital.
As neighbors came to look at the damage late Monday night, they couldn't get over how close this got to being a life-changing tragedy.
"The main thing is that my friends are OK and nobody got hurt and everybody is OK, everything else can be replaced," said neighbor Glen Iannarelli.