Waynesville family left homeless after vehicle crashes through living room
By Ed DiOrio
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WAYNESVILLE, North Carolina (WLOS ) — It’s been days since a man in a vehicle damaged a gas station and crashed into a Waynesville home. The suspect has since been charged, but what has not been resolved is what happened to the family that used to live in the home. They’re now struggling to find a place to stay.
“We need help, and we don’t know where else to ask for it,” Richard Marino said.
“It happened on my birthday, March 15, at 10:30 or 11 at night,” Rosemary Marino said.
Where the Marinos have lived for 17 years is typically a quiet neighborhood. That was not the case last Friday night.
“I was woken up by being tossed across the living room,” Richard said. “The car came through the house. This is once in a great blue moon, and I’m the blue moon.”
Steward Gaddis faces charges of DWI among others after crashing through the Marinos’ home.
“I woke up and still didn’t know what was happening,” Richard said. “I just heard her screaming.”
“I was supposed to go to work on Saturday,” Rosemary said. “I couldn’t go to work because I got no sleep. I still haven’t gotten any sleep. Neither one of us does. We keep reliving the nightmare over and over again.”
As a result of the wreckage, the family was told they were not allowed inside.
After reaching out to multiple shelters, Richard, Rosemary, their two children and three dogs don’t have a place to go.
“Everybody we reach out to just tells us good luck and sorry for your inconvenience,” Richard said.
Richard said his insurance company told him it would be a while before their home would be habitable again.
“It’s going to be a months-long process,” he said. “This isn’t just about a night or two in a hotel. We’re going to be displaced for months. Going through this will make us stronger in the long run. Right now, no. I could care less about being stronger, I’m trying to survive.”
The family is hoping to have a GoFundMe page set up soon.
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