Car bursts into flames after crashing into bookstore in Westchester causing significant damage

By Amanda Starrantino

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    LOS ANGELES (KCAL/KCBS) — A bookstore’s front entrance in Westchester is now destroyed after a car barreled through it overnight.

The Los Angeles Police Department said they responded around 1:09 a.m. to the Westchester Triangle at the corner of West 87th Street and Sepulveda Eastway near La Tijera Boulevard. They received calls about a vehicle that had gone into a building.

Officers believe the driver of the car was speeding before it came to an abrupt stop in the Book of Jewel store.

Video of the scene show extensive damage of the bookstore where books and other stationery items are scattered on the floor. The car didn’t stop until it made its way well inside, hitting the back of this business.

Police said the car didn’t stay in the store for long. The driver managed to back the car out of the store before driving into the adjacent parking lot.

The driver was able to get out of the car with no injuries before it caught on fire. The LAPD said the driver was arrested and taken into custody on suspicion of DUI. Toxicology results are currently unknown.

The car has been towed from the scene The owner of the bookstore has not been by the bookstore yet and the car has been towed.

The Book of Jewel is a woman-owned independent bookstore with three stories of space that serves as a community hub, according to its website.

It has been around for about five years and has a cafe, serves as an event space, a demonstration kitchen and even a rooftop deck with a garden.

According to the Book Jewel’s Instagram account, there is a whole calendar of events slated for this weekend, starting Friday night with four female authors over 50 discussing how they got their books published.

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