CENTER TWP — It was a terrifying wake-up call this morning for two women sleeping in a duplex on Arthur Drive.

All of a sudden there was a big explosion,” said tenant Barbara Kroh. “I thought the house was on fire. It was total destruction.”

It would take several minutes before Kroh and her niece, Melody Cunningham, who is visiting from Maryland, would learn what happened about 4:20 a.m.

A runaway car, apparently northbound on Route 308, left the road and traveled about 400 feet downhill through several yards before slamming into the brick apartment. The car ended up a pile of crumpled and twisted wreckage below the apartment.

The driver, 49-year-old Michael E. Mazurek of Summit Township, was critically injured. He was flown to a Pittsburgh hospital.

State police are investigating what caused Mazurek to lose control of his car.

A complete report appears in Monday’s Butler Eagle.