One man was badly hurt Thursday morning after a police chase through Chateauguay and Kahnawake ended when he drove his car into a store.
The incident began at 1:15 a.m. when an ambulance driver in Chateauguay noticed a car without a licence plate being driven erratically.
The technician called police to report it, and officers soon located the white Kia.
The driver refused to stop, and in fact sped off on Hwy 138 with police in pursuit.
As the chase approached the Kahnawake reserve, officers called the Peacekeepers to inform them about what was happening and to request their assistance.
The driver then veered off the road and crashed into H2O Saloon's retail section, The Wine Barrel.
No employees were in the store at the time, but Sonia Francis was very shocked to arrive at work and see a car inside the store.
"My heart is still pounding, I'm laughing but inside I'm crying. I cried, my boss gave me a big hug and said don't worry, it's going to be fine. But it's hard. Nobody needs this," said Francis. “I can't believe it didn't happen in the daytime because if it wasn't me, one of the other ladies would have perished.”
As is standard procedure, Quebec's independent bureau of investigation (BEI) has taken over the analysis of the chase.
The driver was taken to hospital overnight in critical condition but is expected to survive.
The main road was partly blocked during the police investigation, considerably slowing morning rush hour traffic heading to the Mercier Bridge.
Wine Barrel owner Dwayne Kirby said he received news of the crash early Thursday morning, and was denied access to his business until police had left.
“The majority of the damage was structural but of course we did suffer losses to some of our assets, our cash register and all that,” he said.
Incredibly, none of the store's extensive wine selection was affected by the crash.
It's not known if the car was stolen.
The driver has not been identified by police but is expected to face charges.
