'This is the last straw': Man thrown nearly 14 feet after SUV crashes through living room on Brock Road

At 9:30 a.m. Aug. 10, Bob Lusted was sitting on the couch in the living room of his house at the southeast corner of Brock Road and 8th Concession West.

The next thing he knew, Lusted was flying through the air, thrown 12-14 feet after a white Toyota 4-Runner burst through the wall of his house.

Boom - I ended up in the corner over by the loveseat," Lusted said. I got up and I thought, What the hell?'"

Hamilton Police spokesperson Const. Lorraine Edwards said the 4-Runner was southbound on Brock Road and failed to stop at the stop sign at the four-way stop, striking a red Chevrolet Cruze turning onto Brock Road from 8th Concession.

The 4-Runner continued into the front of Lusted's home, while the Cruze carried on into the stone garage on the property, built in the 1830s. The Cruze went through the wall of the garage and the 71-year-old female driver was trapped until medical assistance arrived.

Edwards said the driver of the 4-Runner, a 45-year-old man from Brampton, was charged with careless driving. Both drivers were taken to hospital with minor injuries.

Amazingly, Lusted was unhurt - but said the accident was the last straw" in a number of dangerous accidents at the corner.

I called the city and said, This is the last straw - something has to be done here,'" Lusted said, adding the traffic department has inspected the intersection since the accident. I'm sick of it."

Lusted's fiancee Linda Bank said everyone in the neighbourhood wants something done about the intersection - notably the installation of a flashing beacon light on the stop signs.

All the way down Brock Road has got lights," she said. There's lights at the 7th, there's lights (Regional Road) 97, there's lights at the 6th (Concession) - the only ones that don't have anything is the 4th Concession and 8th."

However, Bank said even the lights on the stop signs likely won't stop the drivers who blow through the intersection, as there have been several incidents at the intersection over the years.

It's been a dangerous corner for a long time," she said. There's a track record out here something awful."

Bank said several years ago they had an accident where a car ended up on their front porch and at that point she had asked the city about installing a guard rail or Armour Stone.

The city told us, If somebody gets hurt and dies, you're liable for it,'" she said.

Lusted said he would like to see rumble strips installed, but they have been told in the past that rumble strips aren't an option due to the volume of horse trailer traffic.

Bank said she would like to see changes, adding a petition of residents might make a change - which forced action when a fatal accident occurred at the intersection of Brock Road and the 6th Concession.

What's it going to take?" she said. He could have been (killed)."

Following the Aug. 10 accident, Ward 13 Coun. Arlene VanderBeek said one of Lusted's neighbours reached out to her, but noted that was the first time she had heard about issues at the intersection since the area became part of her ward in 2018.

I had an email from a neighbour asking if we could do some of those flashing beacons on the stop signs," she said.

She said staff were originally opposed to adding beacons at the intersection on the basis that flashing beacons should be restricted to critical intersections, so their impact is not lost due to overuse or cause driver distraction. Staff added the intersection is equipped with larger stop signs, left side stop signs, tiger tail reflectors and stop ahead' signs.

VanderBeek said according to staff, the city's collision data shows only five collisions in the past five years - only one of which involved a report from Hamilton Police - the rest were self reported and minor in nature. Going back to 2008, the city's data shows eight collisions - none of them fatal, meaning the intersection ranks fairly lowly on the network screening list.

However, VanderBeek said staff reviewed the corner and decided to install the beacons.

This is the only stop intersection from Highway 5 to Highway 97 that does not have flashing beacons to enhance the existing stop controls," she said. They are issuing a work order to have the solar powered red beacons added to the stop signs on each leg of the intersection at Brock Road and Concession 8."

She added staff will also relocate the southbound stop signs closer to the road, so that they are easier to see. As well, she said staff planned to look at the road markings.

I'm very glad to hear that staff made that determination, because I think it's critically important," she said. It's a straight line, Brock Road, and people do run the stop signs.

In my estimation, they worked quickly, they went immediately, they've made the decision, they'll put the work order in and the work will be done as soon as they can get to it."

For her part, Bank added she would be supportive of installing rumble strips to slow down the traffic.

VanderBeek said staff has not mentioned rumble strips at the intersection, but said it is something she would support. However, she once passed a motion to install rumble strips on Cross Street in Dundas because of heavy, speeding traffic.

But due to the noise and vibration in nearby houses and the adjacent church, they were removed.

If someone has a suggestion, I'm always open to suggestions," she said. I'll send it on to traffic staff and they'll give me a reply."

We have to do what we can to make people safe," VanderBeek continued. To me, this is another step to making people safe."

The accident caused substantial damage to Bank and Lusted's home, and although the insurance company hasn't provided an estimate, they expect it to be upwards of $100,000. A 12-inch by 12-inch beam that was directly behind Lusted was snapped in half like a toothpick," Bank said.

The couple have lived at the property since 2006 but aren't sure if they will be allowed to live in the house while it is repaired. The house was built in 1847, while the garage was a blacksmith's shop built in the 1830s.

Lusted said he is physically sore, but very anxious about being in the house.

I don't even want to watch TV in that living room any more," he said.