Homer Alaska - News -

Dougherty said, "She told me she pulled in slow and all of a sudden she hit the gas pedal instead of the brake.

"And you know what? Her car was fine. There was some paint and some insulation on it and that was it. That Subaru bumper is incredible."

A six foot wide dent roughly the same width as a Subaru's front bumper was left in the west side of the building's corrugated metal exterior. Inside, a gaping hole in the drywall was created by the crash, letting sunlight into the usually darkened theater.

Dougherty had to scramble to cover up the hole with a piece of plywood and tape off a four-row section of seats in the area of the damage before the film began. "Hellboy II" started just a few minutes late.

Homer Police showed up shortly after the accident to fill out a report and take photographs of the damage. Dougherty said that she did not think the driver was ticketed at the scene.

The driver was very upset, said Dougherty, explaining that she was normally a careful driver and wasn't sure how her foot ended up on the wrong pedal.

After exchanging insurance information, Dougherty let her and her friends see the rest of the movie for free, and even threw in a complimentary iced tea to calm her nerves.

Akati Kalugin, longtime handyman for the theater, was busy the next day patching up the damage. He estimated that it would take a few days to restore the wall to its previous state, but did not know how much it might cost.