KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) — Kalamazoo Public Safety officers are releasing more details on a crash that significantly damaged a party store in the Edison Neighborhood.
It occurred around 1 p.m. Wednesday at Howard’s Party Store in the 1300 block of Portage Street near East Stockbridge Avenue.
Authorities say a woman in a small sedan was traveling southbound on Portage Street when she believed an oncoming vehicle was going to hit her, so she over-corrected, smashing into the northeast corner of the store.
The impact pushed a shelf loaded with alcohol approximately 4 feet further into the building and an employee standing behind the shelf was struck.
The victim suffered head and neck injuries and was taken to an area hospital for treatment. The driver of the car was uninjured and not arrested for the crash.
Officers say due to the impact of the crash, the structural integrity of the building was compromised.
The Public Safety Department’s Technical Rescue Team along with personnel from Portage Department of Public Safety and the Michigan 5th District Technical Rescue Team boarded up the building to prevent it from collapsing.
Southbound Portage Street was shut down for about 4 hours during the operation and the business remains closed due to the damage.
