The owner of a Long Beach antique shop is pleading with city officials for help after vehicles keep crashing into her shop.
Emily Yep, the owner of Magnolia and Willow, said the terrifying crashes happen all the time as out-of-control cars slam through the intersection of Willow Street and Magnolia Avenue.
There have been several wrecks that have ended up on her front curb, but just over the weekend, Yep said a car smashed into her shop, marking the second such time a collision has happened.
Security video captured the violent crash as the glass windows were completely shattered and a large amount of store items were destroyed in an instant.
“We’ve always been scared that one was going to make entry,” Yep said. “One did make entry finally, violently crashed into our building on Fourth of July and then just this Saturday, we had another car completely smash our front entrance to our building and make entrance again .”
Yep said her store was still boarded up from the July 4th crash and to have yet another crash happen so soon has left her devastated.
She said she’s been asking for the city’s help to resolve the issue since 2017 without much success.
“Unfortunately, if they don’t do something this time, I’m really scared that someone is going to have to die or multiple people die for the city to pay any kind of attention,” she said.
Aside from the ongoing danger, the boarded-up windows also present an eye sore for potential customers, Yep said.
She’s worried people aren’t stopping in to shop because it appears to be boarded up and closed which means she’s also losing business, along with recovering from the crashes.
Yep said the insurance process has been a prolonged and difficult process, making the ordeal even more stressful.
As far as what may be causing the destructive collisions, Yep has her theory.
“It’s usually the unprotected turn that causes it and it’s just, one was speeding and one was trying to beat the red light,” she explained of the dangerous intersection.
For now, Yep said she’s just trying to take it one day at a time and hopes the city will step in before the situation turns deadly.
“It’s been so stressful that I have to make a joke about it to try to just keep going,” Yep said.
Long Beach city officials told KTLA they’re exploring a temporary solution before finalizing a permanent one in the future.