Significant damage after transport drives into building in Listowel, Ont.
It’s not the way anyone in Listowel, Ont. planned on starting their morning, after a tractor trailer careened off Main Street, jumped the sidewalk, and plowed into the storefronts of a number of downtown businesses.
“Definitely an eye-opener for a Friday morning, an interesting way to start the weekend,” says Brendan Hall, store manager at Corley’s Sports, one of the businesses damaged.
Emergency crews were called to the scene of the downtown crash shortly before 8 a.m. to find part of the passenger side of the tractor trailer cab firmly embedded into the front doors of Diana Sweets Restaurant, in the heart of Listowel’s downtown.
“Luckily for us, Corley’s Sports, we didn’t have much damage. I’m really feeling for Diana Sweets and the Clothing Loft, hopefully they can come out of this OK,” says Hall.
Three residents living above the damaged storefronts were displaced by the crash.
The tractor trailer driver suffered non-life threatening injuries and was treated in hospital.
Police officials say they’re still trying to piece together exactly what led the tractor trailer to end up inside Listowel’s downtown.
“Luckily there were no other people involved. No pedestrians on the sidewalk that were impacted at the time. The mornings can be a busy time in Listowel, with kids on their way to school and other individuals here, so we are fortunate that no other vehicles or people were involved,” says Const. Jillian Johnson of the Perth County OPP.
CTV News London did speak to the owner of the trucking company involved.
The owner says the driver told him he wasn’t feeling well before the crash and passed out, waking up after he hit the building.
The owner added that the driver thinks he had a seizure, however emergency officials would not confirm details about the cause of the crash or state of the driver. An investigation is ongoing.
By mid-afternoon a tow truck had arrived to carefully remove the tractor trailer from the storefronts.
It’s not immediately clear how long the damaged businesses will remain closed, or the residents above the stores displaced. It could be days or possibly even weeks.
“It’s tough to say. They’re checking the structural integrity of the buildings, but for the time being, we’re probably going to be shut down for a bit, just with the damage alone,” says Hall.
The crash closed Listowel's Main Street for much of the day between Wallace Avenue and Livingston Avenue.
#PerthOPP, @NorthPerthFire, and #PerthEMS currently on scene of a collision on Main St W, Listowel. Road is closed between Wallace Ave and Livingston Ave. Please avoid the area.@NorthPerth1 @PerthCounty
— OPP West Region (@OPP_WR) January 21, 2022
^jj pic.twitter.com/vfJ500lB7M
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Worry, buyer's remorse high as real estate market slowdown materializes
A wave of buyer's remorse is taking shape in several heated real estate markets, after housing prices started dropping and the number of sales slowed over the last two months.

'Most horrific': Alberta First Nation investigating after remains of children found
Saddle Lake Cree Nation in eastern Alberta is 'actively researching and investigating' the deaths of at least 200 residential school children who never came home, as remains are being found in unmarked grave sites.
War wounds: Limbs lost and lives devastated in an instant in Ukraine
There is a cost to war — to the countries that wage it, to the soldiers who fight it, to the civilians who endure it. For nations, territory is gained and lost, and sometimes regained and lost again. But some losses are permanent. Lives lost can never be regained. Nor can limbs. And so it is in Ukraine.
NEW THIS MORNING | 'Please' before 'cheese': Answers to your royal etiquette questions
Etiquette expert Julie Blais Comeau answers your questions about how to address the royal couple, how to dress if you're meeting them, and whether or not you can ask for a selfie.
First transgender federal party leader calls for national anti-trans hate strategy
The Green Party of Canada is calling on the federal government to develop a targeted anti-transgender hate strategy, citing a 'rising tide of hate' both in Canada and abroad. Amita Kuttner, who is Canada's first transgender federal party leader, made the call during a press conference on Parliament Hill on Tuesday.
Canadians in the dark about how their data is collected and used, report finds
A new report says digital technology has become so widespread at such a rapid pace that Canadians have little idea what information is being collected about them or how it is used.
Poilievre personally holds investment in Bitcoin as he promotes crypto to Canadians
Conservative Party leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre has a personal financial interest in cryptocurrencies that he has promoted during his campaign as a hedge against inflation.
Finland, Sweden officially apply for NATO membership
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Wednesday that the military alliance stands ready to seize a historic moment and move quickly on allowing Finland and Sweden to join its ranks, after the two countries submitted their membership requests.
Ukrainian soldiers exiting Mariupol steel mill face interrogation, uncertainty
Russia said Wednesday that nearly 1,000 Ukrainian troops at a giant steelworks in Mariupol have surrendered, abandoning their dogged defence of a site that became a symbol of their country's resistance, as the battle in the strategic port city appeared all but over.