Two cars presumed to be racing through the streets of Union City early Sunday lost control, resulting in one car smashing through a duplex and "narrowly" missing a family of five watching television, according to Alameda County Fire Department Battalion Chief James Watkins.
A total of seven people belonging to two households living inside the duplex escaped injury, but they were displaced as a result of the damage, officials said.
"We are hypothesizing that two vehicles were racing at a high rate of speed and unfortunately they ended up in this house and they crashed," Union City Police Department Lt. Lisa Graetz said.
The wreck was reported just before 1 a.m. along the 3700 block of Horner Street, according to officials.
Nearby firefighters heard the sound of a crash and found that a black BMW plowed into one residence before smashing into the neighboring unit.
"We just hear a big noise and big boom and everything went dark," resident Pablo Mota said. "A car came through the garage wall, came through the living room and passed, and go through the other house's living rooms."
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The family inside the first home that was hit "dodged a bullet," Watkins said.
"I think the car missed them by about a foot and a half, so very fortunate that no one was injured," Watkins said.
The people inside the other residence were not near the area where the BMW came to rest, Watkins said.
A man inside the BMW was taken into custody, according to Graetz. The people inside the pickup truck, which ended up in a mangled mess on a nearby lawn, had not been located as of Sunday afternoon.
Watkins estimates that the families could be without their homes for several weeks if not months while repairs are completed.
