Authorities confirmed an elderly driver crashed her car into a local fitness business in Nashville.
The incident happened Friday morning at CrossFit Barefoot in the 5400 block of Charlotte Pike.
Officials said they believe 78-year-old Ronda Taylor was parked in front of the building and thought she was in reverse when she accelerated, wrecking through the building in her 2006 Kia LX.
Authorities confirmed she had been legally parked in a handicap spot, adding she had a handicap plate on her car.
Reports stated one man inside the building was being treated at Vanderbilt University Medical Center for a major injury to his leg after he was pinned between a wall and Taylor's car. Friends and authorities identified the man who was injured as 30-year-old Owen B. Canavan.
“I turn around, and I see Owen get hit by the car, and I think, he’s gone," said Nick Freije, who was leading the class that was taking place when the crash happened. "He gets hit, it’s against the wall, so he’s pinned. He’s at least mangled and crushed, and hopefully he’s not dead.”
According to the hospital, Canavan was listed in critical condition. Friday afternoon, he was undergoing surgery, and his injuries were described as life-threatening.
“It was pretty scary. His femur was clearly smashed and destroyed," Freije said.
Members of CrossFit Barefoot tell me this is the man hit by the car inside the gym: Owen Canavan. He is at Vanderbilt being evaluated. @NC5 pic.twitter.com/Zr4AcP9HUZ
— Jesse Knutson (@NC5_JKnutson) April 7, 2017
Taylor was taken to St. Thomas Midtown Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
“It appears that she thought that she was in reverse, hit the gas, probably realized she was going forward, probably got a little rattled and accidently hit the gas even more, went over the stop, and then over the sidewalk through the door, through a metal rig we have here, steel beams, and then through the back rig and into the wall,” Freije said.
Members of the gym say this is their least attended class. If it was any other class, they think there would have been deaths. @NC5 pic.twitter.com/XRVJ1vzTs3
— Jesse Knutson (@NC5_JKnutson) April 7, 2017
Those at the business said the class they were holding was their least-attended session. Had it been one of their larger classes, they don't believe the outcome would have been good.
“Almost for sure there would be six or seven people dead right now. No doubt. We’d be lined up, and they would have just been like bowling pins," Freije said.
Photos from the scene showed the car drove through the glass front of the building, shattering the windows. The vehicle was all the way inside when emergency crews arrived on scene.
Police are putting out more crime scene tape to include the parking spot the car came from. @NC5 pic.twitter.com/qaRn6Rt65x
— Jesse Knutson (@NC5_JKnutson) April 7, 2017
It was unclear if any charges would be filed in the crash. There was no evidence at the scene of drugs or alcohol being involved in the wreck, according to police.
