Napping Man Survives Large Piece of Metal Hitting, Destroying His New Car

By Bay City News—

A man resting in his car before starting his shift this morning was more then roused from his slumber when a piece of metal from a nearby recycling center in San Leandro flew through his car.
 
The 62-year-old San Francisco man who works at Bayfab Metals at 870 Doolittle Drive, was napping down the block in his car around 7 a.m. when a loud noise startled him awake in the driver's seat, Alameda County fire spokeswoman Aisha Knowles said.
 
He got out of the car to see what caused the noise, which sounded like an explosion, Knowles said.
 
When he got out, he saw that the rear of his car had been blasted open, with the roof rolled under itself. Knowles described it as similar to a sardine can with its lid rolled back.
 
Knowles said he also discovered a big gaping hole on the rear passenger-side door. The man had just bought the 2014 Honda Civic only a few days before the accident, Knowles said. Next to the car, he saw a huge piece of metal that had come to rest near a truck parked next to the Civic.
 
San Leandro police and a fire engine responded to the scene after others reported hearing an explosion sound, Knowles said. Emergency crews evaluated the man and took him to the hospital as a precaution for a complaint of shoulder pain.

He was treated and released a short time later, according to Knowles. No other injuries were reported. It appears the flying metal piece came from the Alco Iron and Metal recycling center at 1081 Doolittle Drive, across the street from where the man had parked. Alco Iron and Metal is based out of San Leandro with other facilities in Vallejo, San Jose and Stockton.
 
Based on a preliminary investigation, it was determined the metal came from a large metal container that was being cut into smaller pieces. The container was not empty, with some sort of substance still inside.

The piece was projected across the street and hit the car, pierced the backside of the roof and trunk, came through the side door and landed just below the truck parked alongside the car, Knowles said.
 
Both the car and truck were towed away from the scene. No other damage was reported, she said. California Division of Occupational Safety investigators are also looking into the accident.