Pickup crashes into NE Bend home, destroys kitchen

Richard Brown and his family were relaxing in their northeast Bend home Saturday afternoon when there was a thunderous crash into the back of their house that sent much of the kitchen off the walls and flying. Fortunately, no one was in that part of the house and there were no injuries.

It turned out that a neighbor’s Toyota Tundra pickup, at a home across the alley along Boyd Acres Road, crashed into the rear patio portion of the two-story house and smashed into the back wall around 3:30 p.m., causing significant damage that will mean staying elsewhere for at least a few weeks while repairs are made.

“I heard a small bang first, and then a huge bang — then everything came flying,” Brown said. “I mean, glass was hitting me in the living room and stuff.”

It was a crash that not only could be heard loudly in the area off Lancaster Street, but also brought out Bend fire and utility crews to check the damage and to shut off power and gas to the home.

Brown said police arrested the driver, and that he was told she had said she just tapped the gas and her pickup “just took off.”

The American Red Cross sent disaster responders to help the family of three adults and two children with their needs, such as temporary housing and other services.

Damages were estimated at $35,000 to the home and $2,000 to contents, according to Bend Fire Battalion Chief Dave Howe.

“I guess we’ll be in a motel through Christmas,” Brown said, shining a flashlight for a visitor to see the damage inside the now-dark house. At the back patio, temporary posts were put in place to support the patio roof.

Deschutes County Jail records showed Erin Minkoff, 55, was arrested by Bend police on a DUII charge and lodged at the jail around 5 p.m. on $5,000 bail. She was released around 7:30 p.m. to a responsible third party, a jail officer said.

According to online court records, Minkoff was arrested twice previously on DUII charges over the past nine years, the first time in 2008, when she was sentenced on a careless driving charge and went through a diversion program. Another misdemeanor DUII arrest in 2011 led to a guilty plea and 15-day jail term, the records showed.