Church sustains heavy damage after fatal crash in Los Angeles

A fatal crash in South Los Angeles claimed the life of one man and, not for the first time, severely damaged a church.

A Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson told KTLA that the collision happened on East Manchester Avenue in L.A.’s Green Meadows neighborhood around 12:20 a.m. Saturday.

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The spokesperson confirmed that the driver, only identified as a Hispanic man, was traveling west on Manchester when he lost control and smashed into Challenge of Faith Church of God in Christ.

Due to the force of the crash, the driver was ejected from the vehicle; he was pronounced dead at the scene by first responders. A passenger inside the vehicle was transported to a nearby hospital, but their condition is not known.

Video obtained by KTLA shows the immediate aftermath of the scene and police investigating the mangled SUV. Surveillance footage provided by the church shows the speeding car fly off the road and slam into the building.

Challenge of Faith Church of God in Christ officials told KTLA 5’s Omar Lewis that this is the fourth time a vehicle has smashed into their house of worship. They cite motorists driving too fast and hitting a dip in the road at the nearby intersection with South Central Avenue, causing them to lose control.

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After this fourth horrific crash, the church says they hope city and county officials step in to do something to prevent future collisions.

“We are just hoping that the city and county can get together and figure out some kind of way to get this dip fixed on Central and Manchester so this won’t happen again,” said assistant pastor David Jessie. “Because we have been through this so many times and it’s always because of cars speeding…losing control and [smashing] into the building.”

A yellow tag on the building’s door deemed the building not structurally sound. One of the church’s deacons was seen taking measurements while others began to clean up the damage inside early Saturday morning.

The church says they will likely have to find another location to hold their regularly scheduled Sunday morning service.

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It is not known whether drugs and/or alcohol played a factor in the crash.

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