LORAIN COUNTY, Ohio — A couple in Lorain County is taking matters into their own hands after a deadly car crash and multiple close calls at their home in Elyria Township.
Linda and Bryan Baus built their home in 1979, south of I-90 at the bend in West Ridge Road. For decades, they had no issues. But in recent years Linda said they’ve had at least four incidents with vehicles driving by.
In June a driver flew off the road and into their chimney in the middle of the night, crushing the couch where Linda was sitting minutes earlier. The 46-year-old driver was killed.
“Straight through here and hit the dead center of the fireplace,” she said, gesturing to her home. “So, the impact of it was like a missile.”
The deadly crash took its toll on the Bauses and, of course, many others. Then, in a matter of weeks, it happened again — this time coming within feet of the home.
“It reinforced the fact that he really had to have this wall,” Linda said.
Bryan initially asked Lorain County to add guardrails but, Linda said, the county wouldn’t. The county did, however, install several signs, warning drivers of the bend in the road. Crews also added two streetlights that make a difference at night.
“It’s a great help. Greatly appreciated,” she said.
Still, Bryan wanted more protection, and he got to work building an 80-foot-long, 9-foot-high concrete wall, complete with rebar, beams and a painted mural showing a forest and a bison.
“At least people will have something beautiful to look at,” Linda said. “It blocks the bad thing that happened here.”
The damage from the fatal crash in June is still visible up close. Linda said they wouldn’t be able to rebrick that side of the home until the spring. But the scars are no longer visible from the road thanks to the new addition to their home.
“Hopefully when people come from that way they’ll see something that looks nice if they notice it. And if they hit it they didn’t notice it to begin with so we’ll deal with that if it happens,” she said.
3News reached out to Lorain County officials to ask about the guardrail and the new signs and lights but have so far not heard back.