The morning after a car rammed into her State Street appliance store, Marie Gallo managed to have a sense of humor about the incident.
“We’re a drive-through appliance center now!” she said with a laugh.
At 6 p.m. on Tuesday, a car plowed into the front of Gallo’s Appliances, a 36-year-old store near the corner of Grace and State Streets. The store’s plate-glass window was shattered and the facade of the building was damaged. The driver of the car suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
Here’s what happened, according to police spokesman Officer Joe Avery:
At 5:57 p.m. a 2005 Acura RSX was passing quickly on State Street. The operator of the car lost control and went into the building. The accident caused “heavy front damage” to the building and shut down State Street for over an hour. The car also plowed through a bus stop structure and a USPS mail box. After the city building inspector checked the building, residents were allowed to reenter their upstairs apartments.
On Wednesday, owner Marie Gallo said that she is thankful no one was seriously hurt or killed in the accident. If there had been someone waiting for a bus or even passing on the sidewalk, things could have turned out very differently. “Thank goodness,” she said. “What’s been damaged can be repaired.”
Gallo said she had not yet estimated the cost of repair; “I haven’t even started thinking about dollar signs.” There was some damage to merchandise, she said. Two antique wringer/dryers that had been in the window were also damaged.
Despite the fact that “the showroom is a mess,” the store is still open, Gallo said. “I’ve got my trucks on the road. … We’re trying to conduct business as usual.”
Gallo said she is grateful for the many phone calls of support she had received.
Robbery?
Police responded to the Walgreens on Foxon Boulevard at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, according to Avery. They were following-up on a report of a robbery, but the alleged victim was nowhere to be found. The store’s security guard told police that the victim had told him that a group of three or four teenagers tried to rob him on Eastern Street.
Crime Map
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NHPD
For block-by-block year-to-date crime information, plus daily crime maps, check out the Independent’s Crime Log.