Updated: 5:04 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014 | Posted: 3:28 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014

Downtown Middletown building damaged in accident

By Rick McCrabb

Staff Writer

MIDDLETOWN — 

    A two-vehicle accident Wednesday afternoon sent two people to the hospital and severely damaged a downtown Middletown building.

    A dump truck and a Dodge Durango collided at the intersection of First Avenue and South Clinton Street, sending the dump truck into a light pole, then into a brick building at 28 S. Clinton St., according to the Sgt. Brian Bost from the State Highway Patrol. He said the preliminary investigation revealed either the driver of the truck or the Durango ran the red light, though no eye witnesses had come forward.

    He said both drivers were transported to Atrium Medical Center in Middletown with non life-threatening injuries. There were no other people in the vehicles. Bost said troopers were going to interview the drivers sometime Wednesday night to determine who was at fault.

He said the investigation is continuing.

    The front of the brick building, the former Zollett medical office, collapsed after it was struck by the dump truck that stopped in the parking lot next door. The truck and the Durango were heavily damaged.

    The building is owned by Freedom Community Development Corp. and soon after the accident occurred at 2 p.m., Katrina Wilson, CEO of the company, arrived to access the damage.

    She was praying that no one was seriously injured in the accident. She said the building is insured.

    “Things can always be replaced but people can’t,” she said.

    A Duke Energy crew shut off the power in the area, and Middletown police officers rerouted traffic

Well it looks like we may have another empty lot downtown.