VOORHEESVILLE, NY (AP) -- An out-of-control SUV, its driver's foot possibly stuck on the gas pedal, drove onto a sidewalk and killed three women in a walking group before crashing into a church Wednesday morning, police said.
A 57-year-old woman was driving the SUV when it accelerated off the road and hit the group at about 8:30 a.m. outside St. Matthew's Roman Catholic Church in the Albany suburb of Voorheesville, acting Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said.
The woman had just dropped off a grandchild at a nearby elementary school and had turned down the street when her foot or a flip-flop she was wearing apparently interfered with the gas pedal, he said. The 2007 Toyota Highlander ran off the road, through the church parking lot, hit the women waiting for a companion and ended up crashing into a wall of the brick church's bell tower.
A 24-year veteran in law enforcement, Apple described the accident as "horrific" and "the most gruesome" he has witnessed.
The driver was being treated at Albany Medical Center for injuries that weren't life-threatening. None of the congregants in the church for morning Mass was hurt.
The victims were part of a group of 40 or 50 on a 5-kilometer guided walk through the picturesque village organized by the Empire State Capital Volkssporters, which sponsors outings in the Albany-Troy-Schenectady area.
Apple said two of the women were from Waterford in neighboring Saratoga County and one was from northern Albany County. Their names weren't immediately released.
A couple of hours after the accident, three women in shorts and sneakers, one of them distraught and being comforted by the others, were seen going to a car near the scene.
Michael and Kazzy Gainor, longtime village residents, said the neighborhood where the accident happened is popular with walkers, runners and cyclists because it's not heavily traveled, especially on weekday mornings after most people have headed off to jobs in Albany.
"This is a great community for walking and other activities." Kazzy Gainor said.
(Copyright ©2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
