The terrifying moment a New York City taxi suddenly veered onto the sidewalk and plowed into two pedestrians was captured on video Saturday afternoon.
But in an astonishing twist, a bizarre stroke of luck may have prevented what witnesses feared would be a deadly tragedy.
The crash unfolded just before 2:45pm at the intersection of Essex and Rivington streets on Manhattan’s Lower East Side, when a female taxi driver lost control while making a turn.
Footage from the scene shows the cab suddenly accelerating, jumping the curb and barreling into two women who were standing on the sidewalk doing their makeup.
Within a split second, the vehicle smashed into a building, but the two pedestrians somehow survived.
Authorities said the victims, both women in their 20s, suffered only minor injuries and were taken to a local hospital.
The reason they survived, police believe, was nothing short of extraordinary.
As the taxi slammed into them, instead of being crushed between the vehicle and the building one of the women was thrown through open cellar doors in the sidewalk and fell into the basement of the deli.
Two women could be seen chatting while doing their makeup on the sidewalk in Manhattan
Within a split second a yellow cab careened into the pair lifting the women onto the hood
The women were nowhere to be seen as a crowd started to gather and passengers inside tried to get out
Investigators say that fall likely saved her life.
Witnesses at the chaotic scene described the moment as surreal.
Anthony, who was eating lunch next door when the crash occurred, said the taxi suddenly lost control and struck the two pedestrians.
‘I was eating right next door. Two girls were walking, this cab lost control, hit the two girls,’ he said.
‘One girl fell to the right of the cab, the other girl fell down through the basement.’
In the confusion immediately after the crash, bystanders feared the worst.
Anthony said the group began calling out her name.
‘Her friend said, “Have you seen my friend?” So we tried calling her name and then we heard a little whisper, “I’m right here. I’m right here,” he told CBS News.
The voice was coming from below where the victim had landed in the basement.
A taxi driver struck two pedestrians before crashing into a building on the Lower East Side
One of the women was thrown through open cellar doors in the sidewalk and fell into the basement of a the deli. It is the fall that likely saved her life
The cab struck a deli storefront, causing damage to glass panels, an HVAC unit and the cellar doors
‘It was crazy,’ he said. ‘I was actually talking to the girl, her name was Dina, in the basement on the other side of the taxi.’
Workers in a nearby sneaker store initially believed the cab had smashed into their building.
‘I thought it was us right here across the street, but nah, I look out, there’s smoke, there’s a car – the deli in the corner, it’s fried,’ one worker told ABC7.
The taxi ultimately slammed into the corner storefront of the deli, causing damage to the glass and the building’s exterior. City officials said the building itself did not suffer structural damage.
Video from the aftermath shows two passengers climbing out of the back seat of the taxi, appearing stunned by what had just happened.
One of them, a woman named Brenna, described the shock of stepping outside the cab and realizing pedestrians had been struck.
The flowers were not part of some somber memorial, but had been on sale when the taxi crashed into them
The car was not in great shape with a lot of damage to its front bumper
The Department of Buildings say there was no structural damage to the building, despite the debris
‘We had no idea what happened and then came out, we saw someone was on the ground – someone was under the car,’ she said.
The passengers appeared physically unharmed and were able to leave the vehicle on their own.
Despite the chaotic scene, the deli owner expressed relief that the outcome was not worse.
‘Everybody is safe,’ he said. ‘That’s what we are all happy about it.’
Police say the taxi driver, a woman in her 20s, was not injured in the crash.
Investigators said no criminality is suspected, and the driver has not been charged.
