ELYRIA — One person has been taken to the hospital after a three-vehicle accident at state Route 57 and East Broad Street a little after 1 p.m.
A blue Chevrolet 3500 pickup truck hit a beige Buick LeSabre, sending that car into the side of a truck that was hauling windows and sheets of glass.
The glass truck was hauling glass for W.A. Wilson Glass Plus, an out-of town glass distributor.
A total of four people were in the vehicles. Three of them were unhurt. An elderly woman who was driving the Buick was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
Westbound traffic on Broad Street was blocked for a time.
Elyria police, the Elyria Fire Department and LifeCare responded.
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Russell Branyan is expected to be activated from the disabled list Wednesday for opener of the Indians’ three-game series in Minnesota.
To clear room for Branyan on the 25-man roster, Cleveland optioned struggling outfielder Michael Brantley to Triple-A Columbus.
Branyan missed all of the exhibition season and has been on the disabled list since the start of the regular season with a herniated disk in his lower back.
Curious why crews working on the street in front of their house left without finishing the job Friday, Rachel Gayhart and her husband, James, decided to look through footage from their surveillance camera.
What they wound up seeing reminded Rachel of “something out of a horror movie.”
Rachel Gayhart, 32, said she was getting ready to leave for lunch with her husband about 11:30 a.m. Friday when she saw crews setting up at the end of her driveway at 2855 Wilson St. on Lorain’s east side. She remembers asking them not to block her in because she would be leaving.
“I left, came home about 2 o’clock, and noticed the (temporary) patch was still there,” she said.
When James, 34, came home Friday night, he suggested looking at footage from the security camera.
“We rewound the security camera to see what they did,” she said. “At the speed we were watching it we just saw (one of the workers) walking up our driveway.”
Slowing it way down revealed the horrifying site.
As a worker operates a large piece of machinery in the road, a large circular saw blade — about three feet in diameter — comes loose and flies out of the machine.
“In slow motion we could see this circular thing come bouncing up the driveway,” she said. They went outside and saw gouges in the apron of the driveway, gouges in the grass of a neighbor’s yard and a large laceration, where the blade had lodged in the side of the house next door, right underneath a front bedroom window.”
Of the worker, Gayhart said, “He puts his hands on his hips, looking around like ‘I wonder if anyone else saw this’ ” before walking up the drive to retrieve the blade.
“Just out of shot of the camera, he’s taking it out of the house before looking at the blade spots in the yard,” she said. “He the puts blade back in machine, finishes cutting up the patch and drives away.”
After calling police and leaving a message for the Lorain Utilities Department, Gayhart said her husband set to work putting together a video for Youtube.
The finished video, titled “How To Not Repair A Street (Or, what happens if the cutting wheel is not properly secured),” is a combination of security footage and photos set to the fast-paced “Sabre Dance” song.
A little before noon today, Rachel was still waiting to hear back from the Utilities Department but said someone, apparently from the city, had been outside inspecting the blade marks.
The Utility Department referred calls to Ken Shawver, Lorain chief deputy safety-service director. He did not immediately return a phone call.
Rachel Gayhart said she and her husband want some answers, adding “We don’t know if he actually told anybody that he damaged the house.”
But they’re also thankful nothing worse happened.
“Had it been like two feet to the west, it would have hit a gas main,” Gayhart said.
And the house it became lodged in is now unoccupied, but “the people that lived in the house before had five kids that were always outside,” she said.
And the reaction to the Youtube video?
“We both put it on our Facebook pages,” Gayhart said. “Not to many people were surprised that it happened in Lorain.”
CLEVELAND — Travis Hafner was out of the lineup Sunday for the first time this year. His bat has been gone since the start of the season.
Though Hafner has produced a positive vibe by remaining healthy through the first 12 games, he has been far from the offensive force he once was, batting just .231 with two extra-base hits and three RBIs in 11 games. He has struck out 11 times in 39 at-bats.
Hafner was the only Cleveland player to reach base safely in the first 10 games of the season, but he finished the recent six-game homestand with just three hits in 16 at-bats.
Veteran utility man Mark Grudzielanek replaced Hafner at designated hitter for the series finale with Chicago. Third baseman Jhonny Peralta filled the cleanup spot in the batting order.
The Indians are optimistic that Hafner can return to the form he displayed when he batted no less than .305, while averaging 34.3 homers and 111.3 RBIs per season from 2004-06.
He has shown no signs of that thus far.
Still going
Russell Branyan was scheduled to continue his rehab assignment at Double-A Akron on Sunday.
Branyan has played in five rehab games for Triple-A Columbus and Akron (5-for-18, double, RBI), but has yet to play on consecutive days, which manager Manny Acta said he wants to see before the slugger is activated from the disabled list.
Next up
The Indians are off today and on the road for the next nine games, starting with a three-game series against the division-leading Twins that begins Tuesday night at 8:10.
Justin Masterson (0-1, 2.45 ERA) opens the set against RHP Kevin Slowey (1-1, 3.48), while David Huff (1-1, 1.80) and LHP Francisco Liriano (1-0, 2.08) square off in Game 2 on Wednesday (8:10 p.m.).
Mitch Talbot (1-1, 3.21) goes in the series finale Thursday (1:10 p.m.), while the Twins counter with RHP Scott Baker (2-1, 3.38).
It will be Cleveland’s first visit to the Twins’ new ballpark, Target Field.
Name game
When Jake Westbrook and Jake Peavy squared off Saturday at Progressive Field, it was the first time in major league history that two pitchers named Jake started against each other.
Making it more ironic is that it took place in a park that was once nicknamed “The Jake.”
Minor details
Right-hander Johan Pino and Triple-A Columbus outdueled Cuban phenom Aroldis Chapman and the Louisville Bats (Cincinnati) on Saturday, winning a 3-1 decision. Pino, acquired from the Twins for Carl Pavano last year, worked seven scoreless innings and allowed four hits while striking out six. Chapman allowed a run on just a hit through five innings, but walked four. Pino has won both of his starts, allowing just two earned runs.
Roundin’ third
Cleveland’s starting pitchers entered Sunday with a 2.84 ERA over the last 10 games, and ranked fourth in the American League with a 3.31 ERA for the season.
Sunday was the Indians’ first non-comeback win of the season.
Omar Vizquel’s double in the fifth inning was his 2,706th career hit, moving him past Doc Cramer and into sole possession of 60th place on the all-time hits list.
