SOUTH BOISE, Idaho — The owner of La Vie Nail Spa in Boise recounts the terrifying moment a car crashed through the storefront, narrowly avoiding serious injuries to the multiple customers and employees inside.
- La Vie Nail Spa is back open for business following the crash.
- Storefront Safety Council estimates similar crashes happen 100 times a day across the country, with as many as 16,000 injuries and 2600 deaths every year.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
"So it's pretty much right through here... and it took down this window frame," says Wooky Ngo, owner of La Vie Nail Spa.
Wooky Ngo recalls the moment a car came flying through their storefront at La Vie Nails Salon, with over 28 customers and employees inside. The car landed in the waiting area—a spot where customers relax and where parents often leave their children to wait during their appointments.
"We had a nail tech sitting here... 3 customers there... it just went right through in between," says Ngo. Somehow, no one inside the salon was seriously injured.
Boise Police tell me the 19-year-old driver swerved to avoid hitting another car at Five Mile and Cloverdale. The teen was cited with a misdemeanor for negligent driving. The salon's regulars were relieved to hear business was back up and running within 2 days.
"I’m so grateful to hear it wasn’t any worse than it was because this place means so much to me, and I feel like La Vie is family to me," says Katie Kahlar. This isn't the first time this has happened in South Boise. Just down Overland Road, Mike Lukes Jewelry and Classy Nails experienced cars crashing into their storefronts in the past year, forcing both of them to close for several months.
The Storefront Safety Council, an organization advocating for safety barriers in front of businesses, says storefront crashes occur more than 100 times a day across the country, with as many as 16,000 injuries and 2,600 deaths every year.
"Nobody was seriously injured, that was what I prayed for, and the other thing I prayed for was for our business to be up and running as soon as possible," says Ngo.
