Woman crashes car into Encinitas Trader Joe’s, injures four people

An unlicensed 87-year-old woman crashed her car into a Trader Joe’s store in Encinitas and injured four people on the afternoon of Jan. 26, authorities said.

A preliminary investigation found the woman, who was the sole occupant of a 2002 Honda Civic, backed her car into the store at 115 N. El Camino Real near the front door at about 2:38 p.m. and hit four female pedestrians, said Sgt. Scott Bligh of the San Diego Sheriff’s Department’s North Coastal Station.

The driver told Sheriff’s deputies that she had been trying to back out of a parking space after leaving the store when she confused the gas pedal for the brake and backed into the four women, according to a news release from the San Diego Sheriff’s Department.

Three of the pedestrians were taken to local hospitals, while one was treated at the scene, Bligh said. No information was immediately available on any of their conditions, but authorities said each woman complained of pain and one was being treated for potential broken bones.

The driver, who had been cited in the past for prior moving violations and has never been licensed, was uninjured, Bligh said.

The driver was cited for driving while unlicensed and her vehicle was impounded, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

The investigation is ongoing.