Published: March 07, 2008 11:13 pm      

Two killed as truck hits home; 5-year-old boy inside unharmed

SEWARD — A 5-year-old boy getting up to play a game narrowly escaped injury late Thursday when, seconds later, a pickup ran over his bed in a wreck that killed the truck’s occupants.

Frances Smith, the 5-year-old boy’s grandmother and legal guardian, told The Associated Press she had just put the boy, Lenny Garshnick, to bed minutes earlier.

Another child in the room also was unhurt when the truck smashed through the walls of the home.

But two young men were killed when their fast-moving pickup ran off the road and rammed into the side of the house at 10:30 p.m. Thursday on Route 711.

State police identified the victims as James Lawrence Foster, 21, of New Florence, and Jon Andrew Barlak, 21, of Armagh.

Police said Foster was driving the northbound truck, which came to rest in the bedroom.

Lenny was trapped in the bedroom but neighbors dug into the debris and removed him through a hole in the wall, Smith said.

The house, now converted into apartments, formerly was a bar, first known as the Twin Towers and later as Reed’s Sports Bar.

Firefighters from Seward and New Florence assisted at the scene, Seward fire Chief Dennis Rudnik said. Authorities said both men were trapped in the wreckage.

The chief described the accident as a tragedy and a difficult situation for firefighters and other emergency responders.

The crash site is where another Seward man was killed several years ago, neighbor Elly Prigmore said. Through the years, she said other accidents happened at the same curve and, depending on which direction the vehicles were traveling, they ended up in structures on opposite sides of the road.