Residents return to Lowertown townhome day after it was hit by car

Residents were allowed to return to a Lowertown townhome on Thursday, the day after being evacuated due to a vehicle striking one of the building's structural supports.

Ottawa Fire Services said in a statement Wednesday that a moving truck crashed into a car which then hit a concrete pillar at the front of the house. The fire department was called to the scene around 5 p.m.

When they arrived, they confirmed there was structural damage to multiple units. The structural collapse team confirmed that the structural integrity of the townhouse was compromised and began shoring up the structure.

Five people were temporarily relocated due to the damage, according to Esther Njuguna, a spokesperson for the property owner, Ottawa Community Housing.

After a structural assessment on Thursday, workers began repairing the damage and the tenants were allowed to return, Njuguna said.

"We're just happy the tenants were able to go back home," Njuguna said.

Earlier, local resident Chantal Lavergne described hearing the collision as she was going for a walk.

"My daughter ended up calling me and asking me if I was OK, and she looked out her bedroom window and noticed that the beam had been damaged," she told CBC News on Wednesday.

Lavergne, who has lived in the area for four years, compared the sound of the crash to a garbage truck emptying a dumpster.

"That's how loud the bang was. And that's what we all thought until we went and looked," she said. "It was pretty scary."

On Wednesday, CBC News saw tenants of the townhome being allowed into the damaged structure by a member of Ottawa Community Housing to retrieve their pets and some of their belongings before being temporarily relocated elsewhere.

An OC Transpo bus was used to shelter the townhome's displaced tenants. A nearby U-Haul van had deployed its airbags.

Ottawa police said they charged the driver, a 58-year-old man, with several unspecified offences under the Highway Traffic Act.