None hurt after minivan slams through 3 rooms of Bloomingdale home

No one was injured after a minivan slammed into a Bloomingdale home, breaking through three rooms before coming to a halt Thursday night, according to fire officials.

Battalion Chief Chris Wilson, of the Bloomingdale Fire Protection District, said there was no one in the house at the time of the crash because the family was celebrating Christmas with their relatives in a different town.

"The day before they had 40 people in the house," Wilson said late Thursday night.

When firefighters arrived they found the minivan in the living room after it had broken through the front room and the dining room.

Wilson said the rescuers pulled out the driver, who was treated and released without needing to go to the hospital.

Wilson said crews needed to shore up the house on the 100 block of Norton Drive to make sure it would not collapse because it had sustained structural damage. They used both aluminum rescue struts, which can hold 40,000 pounds, and wooden shoring that firefighters built on the scene with lumber and tools they had in their truck.

Firefighters also had to deal with fuel leaking from the vehicle's ruptured gas tank so it would not catch fire.

After ensuring the home would not fall in on itself or explode, crews used a tow truck to remove the minivan.

Wilson said the entire operation took about two hours. Wilson said the family who lived at the house arrived on the scene about the same time the firefighters got there at around 7:20 p.m. Neighbors who heard the wreck had called them.

"They were very upset but thankful that no one was injured," Wilson said.

Wilson would not release details about the medical emergency that led to the crash. The Carol Stream Fire Protection District assisted at the scene.