What’s next for Barrhaven residents after dump truck barrels through cars

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Residents cleaning up after dump truck barrels down Barrhaven street

Dump truck slams into vehicles outside Ottawa homes

Dump truck rams into several vehicles

Caught on camera: Dump truck tears through Ottawa neighbourhood

Dump truck driver loses control

Barrhaven homeowners react after dump truck damages vehicles

As residents pick up the pieces after a dump truck rammed through several vehicles in Ottawa’s Barrhaven neighborhood, many are now turning to their insurance companies for next steps.

The dump truck barreled down Apolune Street near Cambrian Road Tuesday morning and left several vehicles parked in front of homes damaged. Ottawa paramedics say the driver suffered a medical emergency “possibly related to the heat.” There were no other injuries.

• Dump truck tears through Ottawa’s Barrhaven neighbourhood

“We have to deal with insurance now. We were all just going about our lives before, but we have to track down the information for insurance. We have to do all the legwork,” said resident Dan Whelan, who witnessed the crash.

“I just saw the side of the truck, like, in a flash and then bang, bang, bang.”

Insurance experts say vehicle owners in these types of situations should know they’re covered if they’re not at fault.

“If you’re not at fault in an accident, you do have coverage. You deal with your own insurance company, and they’ll be able to take care of the repairs or pay you the value of the vehicle if there’s extensive damages,” said Rob de Pruis, Insurance Bureau of Canada National Director of Consumer and Industry Relations.

“It is part of the mandatory coverage. Even if they didn’t purchase optional coverage for things like fire, and hail, and wind, that doesn’t matter because this is part of the mandatory product.”

Police have provided little information about the crash but said an investigation is ongoing.

For some residents, the crash left more than just property damage.

“It’s so scary. Like, even my kids, they’re still having trauma,” said witness Abdalla Abdelrahman.

Many were minutes away from what could have been a tragedy.

“I was with my kids outside to bring something in and we came in and it was just like four minutes and then this happened. It was crazy. I was thinking, ‘what if we were still in the car?’” Abdelrahman said on Wednesday.

Natasha Gratton captured the dramatic scene on her home security camera as the truck demolished two parked cars. A total of six cars were damaged, witnesses say.

“So many cars were damaged but I’m so glad that there were no kids because it could have been worse,” Gratton said.

While the focus now is on cleanup and repairs, some hope the incident serves as a reminder to take precautions during extreme heat events.

“I work in trades too. I’ve seen people collapsing while they’re on their job site and, it has become quite common these days because of the heat exhaustion and all,” said resident Karan Veersingh.

Whelan added: “I hope people are more careful. I can’t really get more basic than that. That’s really what we want.”

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