Woman crashes car, then falls down well

It was bad enough when the Lebanon County woman crashed her sport-utility vehicle early this morning in Clay Township.

But making matters worse, police said, when Melissa M. Herr, 37, of Kleinfeltersville, got out of her vehicle to look at the damage, she tumbled down a well.

Herr was eventually rescued and taken to Lancaster General Hospital, state police said. She was not seriously injured, troopers said, but sustained bruises to her back and arms.

She also faces drunken driving charges, Trooper Paul E. Hardnock said.

According to state police, Herr was traveling north on North Clay Road, past Hopeland Road, around 12:30 a.m. today when she struck a fence and the concrete pad over a well.

Neighbors heard the crash and went to investigate, officials said, and saw Herr get out of the vehicle and start to walk around. As someone called 911 for help, witnesses told officials they saw her fall into the 30-foot well.

The cold water was up to her chest, officials said, and Herr was down in the well for about 30 minutes until she could be rescued by volunteers from Brickerville and Durlach fire departments.

Herr was flown to the hospital for treatment of her injuries, and her vehicle was towed from the scene, state police said. The roads around the accident scene were closed for a period of time until the woman could be rescued from the well.

Also this morning, in West Lampeter Township, a woman fell asleep while driving to work around 4:40 a.m. and crashed into a house.

Neither the driver of the car, Nicole Wood, 20, of Holtwood, or the occupants of the house, Raymond and Mary Jenks and their two children, were hurt, police said.

Police said Wood was traveling north on Willow Street Pike on her way to work when she fell asleep.

Her car crashed into the Jenks' home at 2709 Willow Street Pike, near Kreider Avenue, damaging the porch and a front window.

Police said the Jenks family, whose members were asleep on the second floor, were not hurt, and the damage to their home was not major.

State police also reported that on Monday at about 5:30 a.m. 39-year-old Bart resident Scott Groff was injured when he lost control of the car he was driving south on Route 896 near Route 372. The car flipped onto its roof and was struck by an oncoming Jeep driven by Robert Raimondo, 26, of Hummelstown.

Groff was taken to Lancaster General Hospital for treatment of injuries, police said.

That first bit is hillarious!

Sucks about the chick that crashed into the house though.