Driver smashes SUV into Redmond Sprint store

A Redmond woman accidentally smashed her SUV not just into, but through the Sprint cellphone store at the Redmond Fred Meyer Sunday morning — then backed out again, police said. No one was hurt, as it was hours before the store was due to open, but the crash left behind tens of thousands of dollars in damage.

Redmond police Sgt. Aaron Wells said the 79-year-old woman, whose name was not released, was parking in front of the store when she hit the wrong pedal and sent her SUV careening through the front windows of the Sprint by S Wireless store around 9:10 a.m. at the Fred Meyer shopping center at 944 SW Veterans Way.

Wells said the driver “stepped on the gas instead of the brake — her foot slipped or something,” sending her dark-blue Ford Explorer careening through the storefront and the displays as well, reaching the back wall, according to witnesses on scene.

She already had backed out of the store by the time police arrived, to find no one injured, though Wells said the woman was understandably “shaken up a little.”

“The SUV wasn’t that damaged,” either, Wells said — just “a few scratches.” There was no word yet on whether the driver would be cited.

While no one could talk yet on camera, a Sprint by S Wireless official told NewsChannel 21 the damage is likely to hit $40,000. He noted they had just finished a store remodel in late January.

Nobody was in the building yet, fortunately, as the store opens at noon on Sundays.

The driver was not cited, but anyone who witnessed the incident was asked to contact Redmond police at (541) 693-6911 and refer to case No. 14-84684.