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SPANISH FORK — A garbage truck crashed into a house in Spanish Fork early Tuesday after the driver had an apparent medical episode, police said.
The truck went into the home at 300 N. 200 East at 7:39 a.m., Spanish Fork Police Lt. Cory Slaymaker said.
"I'm still kind of shaking from it," said Daniel Raith, the homeowner.
Raith said the truck went through his garage and into his dining area where he had been feeding his cats only minutes earlier.
"It was like thunder just came through my house. ... The fact that I was just in that room, and left, I'm just happy that I'm here," he said.
Raith said he tried to get to the driver of the garbage truck, but the surroundings were unstable and the dining area was filled with debris.
"The wheels were still spinning on the truck and creating a big cloud of smoke everywhere," Raith said.
Spanish Fork police say it appears the 55-year-old driver of the garbage truck suffered a seizure, losing consciousness behind the wheel.
"When our officers arrived, the driver was still inside the cab of the truck unconscious," Slaymaker said. "He has been taken to Spanish Fork Hospital for treatment."
The driver suffered minor injuries in the crash and was alert in the hospital Tuesday evening.
The home's occupants — three adults — were uninjured. The home sustained "severe" structural damage, Slaymaker said.
As the garbage truck was pulled from the home, Raith and his husband stood nearby, trying to process the damage it caused.
"I'm in shock," Raith said. "I look at that and I just feel numb right now."
The Red Cross is helping Raith and his husband, as well as a man who was renting a room in the house, find a place to stay while repairs are made.
The crash remains under investigation.
Contributing: Bridger Beal-Cvetko
