PORTLAND, Ore. — Early in the morning on Dec. 30, a car crashed into a home in the Lents neighborhood, careening off the road and into a family's living room.
“It was just smoke, debris ... fire alarm was going off," recalled Hung Le, who lived at the house. "I thought it might as well have been a bomb or a fire."
Le was sleeping at the time in a room toward the back of the house. His brother was much closer — the front of the black SUV busted through the sheetrock of his bedroom.
“His head was right here," Le said, pointing through a gaping hole in the wall. "Luckily, the bed is on wheels on a hardwood floor."
Fortunately, the bed rolled forward, and no one in the family was hurt. Smoke filled the air, and the family tried to find a way out, their front door unreachable because of the car.
“I saw my brother get out of his room; I told him to come to my room, and we jumped out the back of my window to get out of the house," Le said.
When they reached the front of the house, the brothers saw the driver and other passengers. Video from a doorbell camera shows all of them walking away from the scene.
"We're pretty sure it's at least one guy and three girls," Le said. "They left; they had blood coming down their faces, so they were injured."
The family called 911 and firefighters responded. But Le said it took an hour for police to arrive, and by that time, the driver was gone. Now, they're hoping officers will find the person who is responsible.
In the meantime, the Le family is digging through the debris and wading into insurance claims. Le has also created a GoFundMe.
"They’re waiting for an estimate on all the damages, how long it’s going to take, how long we’re going to be outside the house," Le explained. "It looks like right now, preliminary, maybe a few months."
Despite the devastating damage, the Le family is grateful for their health and the Southeast Portland community rallying around them.
“We don’t even have words for how amazed we are," Le said. "Just complete strangers saying, 'I have a hammer, I have tools, we’re willing to help if you need anything.'”