An SUV crashed through a wall of the Cape Elizabeth Swap Shop on Monday. Photo courtesy of Beth Cary
CAPE ELIZABETH — The Swap Shop in Cape Elizabeth was badly damaged after a vehicle crashed into the building.
Monday afternoon around 2:30 p.m., Cape Elizabeth Police Department responded to a crash at the town-owned Swap Shop, located at the town recycling center on 21 Dennison Drive. According to police, who declined to identify the driver, the SUV was operated by a 72- year-old woman., who accidentally hit the building. The car went through the exterior wall and caused extensive damage to the building. The driver and volunteers, who operate the Swap Shop, have all been reported as uninjured.
The police officers on the scene took preventative measures and had the vehicle towed from the site. Drugs and alcohol have been ruled out according to Cape Elizabeth Detective Ben Davis in a statement on Monday and no charges have been filed. As of Monday night, the cause of the crash was still under investigation.
Beth Cary, who is a volunteer at the Swap Shop and also a resident of Cape Elizabeth, was in the shop when the accident occurred. She said in a previous statement that books went flying as the car crashed through the building hitting several shelving units filled with hardcovered books.
“The sound of the vehicle striking the building sounded like a bomb going off,” said Cary. “It startled everyone. There was this avalanche of books and crashing glass. We’re just very grateful that no one was injured.”
Police have said that the building is being repaired and will take a few weeks until it is completed.
Nestled among books, kitchenware, children’s toys, sporting good, curtains, dishes and more is this community-effort shop. The Swap Shop opened in 1996 and is a group effort between the Cape Elizabeth Public Works Department and Recycling Committee.
The operation takes in useable good and materials and requires the help from Cape Elizabeth residents. The shop also requires volunteer assistance to organize the items that come in. If residents are looking to return bottles they can take them to the Swap Shop Bottle Redemption Center. On October 2020, the redemption center reopened its bottle donation program that allows residents to donate returnables. All proceeds are distributed to various community-based, nonprofit organizations.
For more information on the shop, visit www.capeelizabeth.com/SwapShop.
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