SUV Rams Octagon House in Hudson: 'Looks Like a Bomb Went Off'

Hudson's Octagon House Museum is much the worse for wear Saturday after an SUV drove over the curb and a large tree stump and crashed into the porch, according to museum director Heidi Rushmann. 

The errant vehicle "took out a couple of the big pillars on the porch," damaged rocking chairs and antique planters and "left pretty big beams exposed under the porch," she said.

"It looks like a bomb went off."

SEE ALSO: Eyewitness: SUV 'Swerved Sharply, Slammed' Octagon House at 'Well Over 30 MPH'

The incident occurred in the wee hours of Saturday morning, possibly around 2:30 a.m., according to a Hudson police spokesperson. Police did not locate the driver, who fled, and the crash in under investigation.

Rushmann said the porch acted like a car's bumper to protect the main part of the house, taking the brunt of the impact. "We're lucky there is no broken glass, no doors or windows [damaged]," she said, adding that the foundation also doesn't appear to be damaged but insurance company representatives haven't yet arrived.  

Because the Octagon House is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, not just anyone can do repair work, she said, which will include replacing the entire porch and will "take extra time."

Another "lucky" stroke: The stump the SUV drove over is fresh, belonging to a 100-year-old maple tree taken down in August. The tree was "fairly hollow," so had it been there, the SUV could have knocked it onto the main part of the house, causing worse damage. 

Rushmann said nothing like this has happened to the Octagon House before. She said she is spending Saturday sitting on the porch talking to concerned visitors and curious passersby.