The driver careened her car into the side of the storage barn, then proceeded to hit the mini donut trailer. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

close call

Worker narrowly avoids injury after driver smashes into VIEX storage barn

Sep 18, 2024 | 12:06 PM

NANAIMO — A barn at the Beban Park exhibition grounds may need to be torn down after a driver accidentally drove through a portion of it.

Crews from West Coast Amusements, along with staff and volunteers from the Vancouver Island Exhibition, scheduled to start in two days, were setting up for the annual event on Wednesday, Sept. 18 when the driver of a small white car lost control and smashed into a barn.

The unexpected incident happened just after 10:10 a.m.

Jim Brown, president of the VIEX, told NanaimoNewsNOW a woman was on site to drop of items for one of the fair’s attractions.

“She hit the gas instead of the brake when she was turning, she lost control and ended up [in the barn].”

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Crews reinforced a min-donut trailer after a car unexpectedly hit it during set-up for the annual event. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

The vehicle also collided with a nearby mini-donut kiosk belonging to West Coast Amusements, denting the building’s exterior.

Damage to the barn is considerable, with one of the support pillars taken out. Brown said they’re figuring out what to do ahead of Friday’s grand opening.

“We’re working on that and getting an engineer to see if it’s structurally safe and if we can fix it, or if we need to rip it down.”

He said it was “very bad timing” for the fair, but added the driven appeared shaken up but otherwise unhurt.

Caleb Ryall, a staff member with West Coast Amusements, was pressure washing the mini-donut kiosk when the incident occurred, narrowly missing being hit by the car.

“I heard a crash, bang. It was pretty scary actually. It was an adrenaline rush, I thought I was going to die.”

He, too, was shaken up, but otherwise uninjured.

Nanaimo RCMP, Fire Rescue and BC Emergency Health Services paramedics attended the scene.

A car smashed through the corner of this formally condemend barn, which is now a used as VIEX storage shed. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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