Parishioners avoid injury after car crashes into Wollongong church

Australia Broadcast Center

2 days ago

An Anglican Church minister says he is thankful no-one was hurt after an out-of-control car ploughed into his church.
A driver was treated for minor injuries after a car crashed into St Mark's Anglican Church in West Wollongong about 1.30pm Monday, narrowly avoiding parishioners.
Wollongong police said the car had left the Princes Highway before crashing through a church fence.
The car then crashed through the front doors of the building.
The vehicle went through a front area containing a cafe before driving through another door.
It finally stopped after it crashed into another car at the rear of the church.
It is understood there were eight people inside the church at the time.
Senior minister Alex Zunica said he was grateful the accident did not occur at a busier time.
"The place is often quite full of people and children, so we are just so thankful to God it wasn't at another time," Reverend Zunica said.
He said the cafe had closed for the day, with the car missing eight women who were meeting at the cafe.
"We are providing support to all the people who were involved to make sure they are OK and to help them process what happened," he said.
He said there was significant damage to the building and the cafe but the area where the church held its service was not impacted.
"We are currently assessing the state of the cafe to see if we can do some make-safe repairs and secure it," he said.
A female driver, believed to be aged in her 70s, was treated for hand injuries.
Police are investigating the cause of the crash.