SUV crashes into Catholic elementary school

An eighth-grade student narrowly escaped injury when an SUV crashed into a Roman Catholic elementary school in Northeast Philadelphia.

The student had just entered a second-grade classroom at the Maternity B.V.M. School when a Dodge Durango lost control about 3:30 p.m., crashing into the building at 9220 Old Bustleton Ave., and plowing into the same classroom.

"It's miraculous," said Donna Farrell, spokeswoman for the Philadelphia Archdiocese. "She had just stepped into a closet to get something."

She was not hurt.

"It's my understanding that she's fine," Farrell said.

The driver of the SUV and a 4-year-old passenger were rushed to Aria Health-Torresdale for observation. Neither was seriously injured.

Classes had dismissed at 2:45 p.m., so "a lot of people were milling around inside the school," Farrell said.

Parent-teacher conferences, scheduled for Friday, have been postponed until L&I can inspect the building, Farrell said.