Collision with stolen vehicle sends car crashing into building in Kansas City’s Crossroads area

Alleged carjackers in a Ford Mustang collided with a Toyota Prius Monday morning, sending the Prius crashing into a Crossroads area building, alarming the building’s occupants and briefly prompting a natural gas scare.

And, said one of the occupants, it wasn’t the first time that the building had been hit by a car in the last six months.

Monday’s crash occurred shortly after 11:30 a.m. at the intersection at 18th and Locust streets and damaged a building that houses six apartment units upstairs as well as artist galleries and work spaces below.

The green Mustang had been reported stolen during a carjacking about a half hour earlier near Admiral Boulevard and the Paseo, said Capt. Cindy Cotterman. Police were pursuing the Mustang, which was headed north on Locust, when it allegedly ran a stop sign. The driver of the silver Prius lost control, struck a gas meter and crashed into the building.

The crash caused a gas leak, sending the smell of gas drifting through the neighborhood. Crews were brought in to cap the leak so police could remove the car from the building.

Three people were inside the Mustang at the time of the crash. They were taken to the hospital to be checked out as a precaution. They were later arrested, Cotterman said. The driver of the Prius was also taken to a hospital.

Ashley Krull, who lives in the building, said she was sending emails before she started the day when the crash occurred. She was in an office chair next to the window when she felt a shift in the building and heard a loud bang.

“I felt the impact and really didn’t know what it was at first,” she said. “It felt like a huge gust of wind just came into my apartment even though all the windows were closed.”

She then heard sirens. Krull and other tenants looked outside to see what had happened and they saw officers drawing their weapons.

“We all waited a little bit and then we went outside to check it out,” said Krull, who added that this was the second time in six months that the building had been struck by a car.

Because of the broken gas line, Krull was not being let back into the building and had to cancel her afternoon business appointments.

“I really wish people would stop running into our building,” Krull said. “We love this little area and want to keep it around, keep it nice. Just watch your speed and be safe.”

This story was originally published January 16, 2017 at 4:13 PM with the headline "Collision with stolen vehicle sends car crashing into building in Kansas City’s Crossroads area."