It could have been a lot worse. Howard Pruitt, 60, of Joshua Tree, was driving his Ford Expedition westbound on the highway at Cherokee Trail in Yucca Valley when he lost control of his vehicle. The SUV crossed two lanes of opposing traffic, through the parking lot of a gas station—narrowly missing a gas pump—through a chain link fence, another parking lot, and through the wall of A Second Time Around Thrift store, finally stopping two feet into the store. A 76-year-old woman working as a volunteer in the shop was slightly injured by the crash, suffering bruises and scrapes. Howard Pruitt was uninjured, but was taken to Hi-Desert Medical Center as a precautionary measure.
