Tractor trailer removed after January collision with Sorrento, B.C. home

A Shuswap woman is one step closer to going home after a tractor trailer that slammed into her house at the end of January was finally removed.

Hilda Freimuth spent much of the day on Wednesday watching crews remove the semi-truck from the side of her Sorrento, B.C. home.

The tractor trailer was carrying electronics down the Trans-Canada Highway on the afternoon of Jan. 31 when it left the road and slammed into Freimuth’s attached garage.

After more than two weeks out of her home, she’s relieved and happy the removal is going ahead.

Getting the truck out was a lengthy process. Crews first pulled out the trailer, hoisting it up to the highway above the home using a crane mounted on a towing vehicle.

Then heavy equipment was used to remove part of the roof of Freimuth’s home that the cab was under.

By mid-afternoon, the truck’s cab had also been removed, freeing Freimuth’s vehicle and bringing her one step closer to returning home.

As Freimuth deals with the cleanup, she’s continuing to push the provincial Ministry of Transportation for a barrier between the homes on her street and the highway.

Her neighbour says that previously there was another incident where a vehicle left the highway in this area, but in that case, the truck didn’t hit any of the homes.

“I absolutely think there should be a barrier; it just doesn’t seem safe at all,” said neighbour Adela Bergen.

On Wednesday, the Ministry of Transportation told Global News virtually the same thing it said last week: that it is “reviewing the safety history of the area and is considering what other safety measures may be required at this location.”

1:29 Semi leaves highway, crashes into Sorrento, B.C. house