SHELBY TOWNSHIP, Mich. – Two children and their father were taken to the hospital after an ATV crash in Macomb County.
The crash happened around 6:45 p.m. Tuesday at Wren and Cardinals streets in Shelby Township, according to authorities.
Police said two children, ages nine and 12, were riding the ATV with their father when it slammed into a home on Cardinal Street near 22 Mile and Shelby roads.
Officials believe the driver of the ATV was speeding on Wren Street and lost control in the dark at Cardinal Street and struck a house.
Resident Joe King and his wife were outside at the time of the crash. King said it shook the whole house.
“I heard yelling and a loud ‘boom,’” King said. “The house shook.”
King said the scene unfolded right at his doorstep. His 38-year-old neighbor is known for speeding on his ATV through the neighborhood, King said.
The driver’s 9-year-old daughter and 12-year-old boy were on the ATV.
King and others ran into the yard and lifted the ATV off the 12-year-old boy, they said.
“I had to do what I had to do,” King said. “I had to make sure that kid was OK.”
The crash investigator for Shelby Township police was worried the children might not survive. Both were airlifted to Detroit Receiving Hospital.
Now the children are stable, officials said. The girl was in surgery Wednesday and the boy’s family posted on Facebook that he’s in the intensive care unit. They are waiting for him to respond.
Police said both children have a long road of recovery ahead.
Authorities suspect the 38-year-old ATV driver might have been drinking.
Police said they will be asking for charges against the man.