Three children and a 77-year-old man were injured today at noon when the man drove his car into the side of an East Petersburg daycare center.

William Landis, of East Petersburg, was visiting an ATM at Fulton Bank in the square in East Petersburg when, for an unknown reason, he drove his SUV across a parking lot, over a small gravel embankment, through a wooden fence and into the side of Wee Care Day Care, 5984 Main St.

The Ford Escape wound up completely inside the building, lying on its side.

Three children, ages 3 and 4, were injured. They were taken to an area hospital, as was Landis. Police said their injuries were moderate, but not believed to be life threatening.

A nursing supervisor at Lancaster General Hospital said Landis was listed in serious condition there tonight. No additional information about the children was available.

Sgt. Tom Rudzinski of the Manheim Township Police Department said there were a dozen children in the room at the time of the accident. They were cleaning up after lunch and getting ready for nap time on the other side of the room when the crash occurred.

"We're very fortunate we didn't have more serious injuries," Rudzinski said. "We're working to determine exactly what happened."

There were about 75 people in the building at the time of the crash, including 60 children and 15 staff members.

After the accident, the children were evacuated to the neighboring Fulton Bank, where their parents were called to pick them up.

Rescue vehicles, including fire trucks and a collapse team, were called to the scene to stabilize the building.

The vehicle was pulled from the building by 3 p.m.

Members of the daycare staff appeared teary-eyed and shaken as they handed the children off to their parents after the accident.

Donielle Mehadi of Lancaster arrived to pick up her daughter, Leila, 4.

Mehadi said she received a call that a car rammed into her daughter's classroom.

"At first, when I realized it was her room, I was making sure she was OK," said Mehadi. "As soon as I picked her up, she said, 'My room broke.'

"I'm very relieved," Mehadi continued. "Thank God. "

Kristin Troop, owner of the daycare, said if the children had been lying down for nap time, they would have been on the side of the room where the vehicle broke through.

"I count my lucky stars," she said. "It's unbelievable."

The classroom where the accident occurred will be sealed off, but the building will be open Friday, Troop said.

A crisis intervention team will be on hand to talk to children and staff, if needed.

"We were very lucky," said Troop. "All I can think of is someone was watching out for us."

Troop said Landis was conscious when the car came to a stop, but had to be helped out of the vehicle by emergency personnel.

Firefighters were working to remove siding from the building and enlarging the hole so that the vehicle could be removed.

The parking lot next to the building was closed during the incident.

Blue Rock Fire Rescue Company and the Collapse Rescue Team were on the scene.
cstauffer@lnpnews.com