‘It looked like a bomb went off’: Felton Feed set to reopen after BMW crashes into storefront
Quick Take
Felton Feed & Pet Supply, an institution in the town’s Highway 9 business district, was on course to reopen Wednesday after suffering a direct hit — but no serious injuries — from a motorist Sunday.
Myshka Everett paced through the front of a boarded-up storefront inside Felton Feed & Pet Supply. Plywood separated boxes of dog food and pet medicine from the broken glass just on the other side of the barrier.
Everett’s daughters wheeled a half-dozen 40-pound bags of feed to the back of the store as the family-run operation prepared to reopen Wednesday, just days after a runaway vehicle crashed through the building’s main entrance.
“It looked like a bomb went off after it happened,” Everett said Tuesday. Everett and her sister, Chantal Vaughan, own and operate the business.
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On Sunday evening, a BMW crashed through the front of the store located at 6221 Highway 9 in Felton. The California Highway Patrol reported no serious injuries, though the driver, a 30-year-old Ben Lomond man, was alleged to have lost consciousness. “Alcohol and/or drugs were determined not to be a factor,” the report said.
“I didn’t realize what had happened. I felt the impact because it jolted the building. And I heard things crashing,” Vaughan said, adding that she initially thought it was the beginnings of an earthquake.
Despite witnessing a BMW fly into the cash register, Vaughan was in good spirits, particularly given that her customers, employees and the driver himself had avoided serious injury. Vaughan said one of the store’s sales associates was at the cash register with a customer when the incident occurred and “had very good reflexes and jumped out of the way.”
“When you have your own business, there’s no way you can prepare for everything,” she said. “And what’s important is that no one was seriously injured. That’s why there’s insurance.”
The sisters took over the business in August 2016, and Vaughan said they were making their way through a remodel for the five-year anniversary of their ownership. She said the renovations began at the back of the store, but joked now the anterior will have to be added to the list.
“We started remodeling, which I suppose is a good thing, and the plan was to have it all trickle forward,” Vaughn said. “That will have to stop [for now].”
After a year that saw both the COVID-19 pandemic and CZU Lightning Complex wildfires, remaining closed wasn’t an option for the store, which has become something of an institution along Felton’s Highway 9 business district.
Security footage from inside Felton Feed & Pet Supply on Sunday, May 23 where a BMW crashed into the front of the store. No serious injuries were reported. Story, additional details coming soon. pic.twitter.com/iTFZ22g7lK
— Neil Strebig (@neilStrebig) May 26, 2021
“It won’t scare us away,” Vaughan said. “This store has been part of the community for 25 years and that’s something we’ve been mindful of. It’s important to carry on.”
Vaughan said Felton Food & Pet Supply will reopen on Wednesday at 10 a.m. for normal business hours. Patrons can park along Gushee Street and use the store’s rear entrance.
California Highway Patrol Officer Sam Courtney said the collision is still under investigation.