NORTHGLENN, Colo. — Neighbors in Northglenn are expressing concerns after a terrifying crash into a home left them on edge earlier this week.
Back in October, Denver7 spoke with concerned families who live near Irma and Truda Drives, who said the issue of speeding drivers and crashes in their neighborhood was steadily getting worse.
Some of those same neighbors contacted Denver7 again this week after a driver went crashing into a garage in the area, this time near Malley and Irma Drives on Tuesday night.
Denver7 spoke with Mike Kruger, one of the homeowners of that house on Friday. He said he and his family are now left picking up the pieces after the crash caused extensive damage to his daughter's house.
"It was pretty scary. There could have been somebody in there," Kruger said.
Kruger told Denver7 he doesn't live in the home but has co-owned it with his daughter for about 10 years. He said his daughter was not home at the time but said her roommate called to let them know something had happened.
"She thought the house was on fire and that there was some kind of explosion," he said. "It was pretty horrific. Something could have happened," Kruger said.
The massive crash also reached neighbor Stanley Brown's house.
"I heard a noise, but I was leaning against the wall, and I felt the wall," Brown said, "I thought something exploded."
Brown's garage and yard suffered damages from the crash.
Tuesday's chaotic scene is one neighbors said has become all too common. Speeding drivers and crashes are an issue they said they've dealt with for decades.
"I've had three cars on my lawn," Brown said, adding that he has lived in his home since 2005. "It's happened before, so it wasn't completely unexpected."
Back in October, Diana Wilson, director of communications for the city, said the city was looking at three solutions. The first was adding more signage before stop signs. The second was a public service announcement that was put together by Northglenn police officers to remind drivers about the rules of the road. Lastly, Wilson said they also planned to increase police patrols in the intersection.
Friday, Denver7 followed up with Northglenn city officials and police department to see if there was follow-through on those promises.
A spokesperson with the city said they've added thermoplastic stop bars and additional signage near stop signs to make them more visible. They also released the PSA video back in October.
Northglenn PD said Irma Drive is one of four Safety Sensitive Zones.
Officials said the four zones are, in effect, in areas with significant vehicle, pedestrian and bicycle traffic where speeding is an issue, like school and construction zones, where fines for speeding tickets will be doubled.
Northglenn PD told Denver7 they have increased patrols in these four areas throughout the day and night.
However, neighbors believe more can be done to prevent an even bigger tragedy from occurring next.
"They could watch it some more. I personally think that they could raise the fines considerably," Kruger said. "There's a lot of children in the neighborhood, lots of schools. Maybe put some more devices here to get people to slow down, speed bumps, whatever other things that they could put on the road to make sure people are aware that they need to stop here."
Kruger said his daughter, grand-daughter and their roommate are displaced for the time being.
Northglenn PD said the driver who crashed into the home was detained on the scene and later released.
Officials said they are still investigating what factors led to the crash and if any charges will be filed.
