An SUV rolled over a concrete parking block and crashed into a first-floor unit at a Key Biscayne condominium Saturday evening, causing a brief evacuation of nine units until the structure was cleared by Village authorities. There were no injuries, officials said.
Fernando Ors said he was in the car, a black Mercedes SUV, with his daughter driving. He said she was momentarily confused while shifting to park — and the car then lurched forward, crashing into his own unit at 240 Galen Dr. with other members of the family inside.
“Thank God, everyone’s OK,” he said outside.
Key Biscayne Fire Chief Eric Lang said the vehicle breached the wall and the door around 7:30 p.m. “There were cracks, so we wanted to err on the side of caution. And so they evacuated.”
Rene Velazco, the island’s chief building official, said after photos and a review by a structural engineer, the structure was deemed safe for everyone to return — except the unit that was struck.
Ors said he had just been trying to convince his daughter that driving was safe. But now, he says it will take a while to get over the collision.
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Tony Winton is the editor-in-chief of the Key Biscayne Independent and president of Miami Fourth Estate, Inc. He worked previously at The Associated Press for three decades winning multiple Edward R. Murrow awards. He was president of the News Media Guild, a journalism union, for 10 years. Born in Chicago, he is a graduate of Columbia University. His interests are photography and technology, sailing, cooking, and science fiction.