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Courtney Orton and Andrew Adams Reporting A woman took a wild ride overnight, plowing her car through fences and yards before slamming it into a house.
The woman was driving down the street when she apparently went off the road and drove through several yards before crashing into a house at 5000 South and 5100 West.
Lt. Jay Southam of the Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office said, "She paralleled the row of houses coming northbound, running through five or six yards, destroying fences, shrubbery, property, landscaping, striking one vehicle before coming to rest embedded in the house."
Southam added, "We believe, in looking at the path of damage along her route of travel, that when she became aware she had driven off the road and was striking objects, she reached for the brake pedal but apparently hit the gas pedal instead."
Authorities say the momentum propelled her through several fences and yards and into the house.
Inside the house, someone was sleeping right above where the car hit. But only the 61-year-old driver was hurt. She suffered a head injury.
The homeowner, Brian Harris, said the crash woke him up.
"I thought it was a lightning storm, and I thought lightning hit my roof. Then I woke up and found a car in my basement," Harris said.
He also says this could have been a lot worse.
"It was about half-way in, the tires were down, and my son just moved out last Friday. He would have been dead," Harris said.
Deputies aren't sure if the 61-year-old woman lost consciousness or fell asleep, but say they are investigating and should know more later today.
