A man died after crashing into a Nashua Road home Monday night.
The 59-year-old driver was driving east on Nashua Road (Route 102) when he lost control of the vehicle, Londonderry Fire Battalion Chief Jim Roger said.
The deceased man has been identified as Allan Lee, 59, of Nashua.
Roger said the family – husband, wife and three children – inside the home were “very lucky” they weren’t in the kitchen of the home, where the vehicle struck the residence before becoming airborne over a car parked in the driveway and landing by the garage.
“They were really shaken up. If there had been anyone in that area, there could have been fatalities,” he said.
Fire and Police received multiple calls at 9:08 p.m. reporting a car into the house at 300 Nashua Road and a driver trapped in the car.
Fire Rescue 1 arrived on the scene in under five minutes and found a mother and her three children and a family friend in the front yard. The driver, who was unresponsive, was trapped in his vehicle and the rescue crew worked quickly to extract him.
“They had him out of the car and into the ambulance in a matter of minutes,” Roger said. “It was great teamwork all the way around by our guys from Londonderry Fire. Their quick response, training, and their experience and judgment really paid off.”
Once in the ambulance, the driver went into cardiac arrest and rescue crews were able to revive him on the way to Southern New Hampshire Regional Medical Center in Nashua. The hospital was arranging for ground transportation to Boston when he died.
A 4-year-old who was near the kitchen, where the vehicle struck, suffered a slight head injury and minor abrasions and cuts, according to Roger. Londonderry Detective Christopher Olson said the child was transported to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Nashua by a Hudson ambulance.
Firefighters at the scene put emergency mechanical shoring devices in place to ensure the corner of the home that was damaged didn’t collapse. The residence was deemed uninhabitable by the Londonderry Fire Department
“It was great teamwork all the way around,” Roger said. “We were lucky because we decrease staffing at 8 p.m., but we had another call around 7 p.m. that crews were returning from. We had an extra firefighter who was just doing chores and finishing up who was able to go on Rescue 1. Having that extra paramedic was really helpful.”
The Fire Department contacted the Red Cross to provide assistance to the family in the damaged home. They have relatives in Londonderry with whom they arranged to stay.
Members of the Fire Department drove the family to their relative’s home in two cars and made sure they were safe for the night.
The accident remains under investigation, but as of press time it is thought that excessive speed as well as drug-related impairment may have played a role.