Residents say something must be done after drunk driver crashes into building

By Bella Line

Click here for updates on this story

    CAPE CORAL, Florida (WFTX) — Cape Coral police say a man was driving drunk on Cape Coral Parkway when he crashed into a condo building.

“It was around 2:30 am my husband and I heard a bang that sounded like a bomb,” said one condo owner.

It was that noise and the rattle of their condo building that owners tell Fox 4’s Bella Line was a frightening wake-up call. Even for Charles Langenfeld who was not at his condo at the time of the crash, but came home to the aftermath.

“I got called by a friend of mine who was driving by now just a couple hours later, and he called me and said, ‘Chuck, did your house get just hit by a car?’ I said, ‘not that I’m aware of,’ so I came rushing over to see what was left of it,” said Charles Langenfeld.

He says he has lived in the building for 25 years and he’s not surprised something like this happened.

“There’s a culture of high-speed driving, and it’s magnified on a street that looks like a highway,” said Langenfeld.

The driver was this man, 27-year-old Alex Wilson:

Police say he drove from the Pelican and Cape Coral Parkway intersection; crossed over 4 lanes; over a median; took off a fire hydrant; went through bushes and trees, and then landed in this building.

Cape Coral Police say when officers breathalyzed him he blew a .177 and .172, more than twice the legal limit.

Thankfully, they say no one was injured in the crash but it’s an area they say officers keep an eye on.

“That is definitely an area that our officers are constantly patrolling. I know that on night shift, especially in between calls for service, that’s an area that our officers focus on,” said Lisa Greenberg, spokesperson for CCPD.

Now, thousands of dollars later in damages, Langenfeld and his neighbors tell Line that with how fast drivers go on Cape Coral Parkway, something needs to be done.

“This speed limit is too high when you have driveway cuts every 60 feet. I mean, somebody could back out of their driveway, they have no chance,” said Langenfeld.

Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.