The occupants of a Scarborough residence escaped unharmed after a stolen van being pursued by police crashed into the front of their home and burst into flames early Friday morning.
It happened at a residence on Ellesmere Road near Kennedy Road at around 3:45 a.m.
Toronto Fire says that people were inside the house at the time but were able to escape without injury.
The damage to the home is believed to be extensive.
“They (the residents) won’t be going back into that house,” District Chief Joe Bennett told CP24 at the scene. “The roof is severely damaged, it is wide open in the centre area, and we are not sure about the structural integrity of the building either.”
Police say officers were investigating an unrelated matter in the area early Friday morning when they observed the suspect vehicle approaching with its lights off.
Once the vehicle got closer to the officers, police say its driver made an abrupt U-turn and then fled at a high rate of speed.
The officers then pursued the vehicle but lost sight of it east of Kennedy Road.
Police say that when officers caught up with the vehicle it had already crashed into the home.
The driver of the vehicle was seen limping away from the scene by witnesses and was briefly able to elude police, however an officer with the canine unit found him hiding in a nearby dumpster a short time later.
The suspect was then taken to hospital for treatment.
The Special Investigations Unit will not invoke their mandate in the case as the injuries to the suspect are not considered serious.
