Abbeville family still dealing with effects of weekend wreck at their home

An incident Sunday morning left one Abbeville family with lingering frustration Monday morning.
Linda and Cleveland Plowden lay sound asleep early Sunday morning  until they heard a loud noise outside of their South St. Valarie home in Abbeville.
“My husband heard a bam,” Linda Plowden said. “Then he heard another bam.”
Just after midnight, Brandon Keith Thomas,  traveling south, allegedly veered left off South St. Valarie before ultimately striking two cars parked in the Plowdens’ driveway. Abbeville Police arrested Thomas, who is charged with DWI with an Accident, Reckless operation of a vehicle, open container and careless operation.
“It was loud,” Plowden said of the incident. “We looked outside and we saw my car was different from the way it was left parked.
“We walked outside and his (Thomas’) was just wedged up against our cars.”
Plowden said Thomas claimed to officials responding to the accident to not have been driving.
“He was stuck there behind the steering wheel,” Plowden said.
As he traveled south on the street, Thomas allegedly went off the road and hit a fence and a truck parked in the driveway of the Plowdens’ neighbors. After spinning, the neighbors’ truck rested facing the Plowdens’ house. Thomas’ vehicle crashed through a chain fence, hitting the Plowdens’ vehicles, forcing the vehicles to hit the house. Skid marks through both yards highlight the path of Thomas’ vehicle.
Linda Plowden said that she holds no bitterness toward Thomas.
 “I know the man,” she said. “I’ve seen him grow up. I just wish he would get help.
“I’m just grateful no one was killed.”
The remaining effects of the situation, however, have simply left the Plowdens frustrated.
“I’m aggravated and upset,” Linda Plowden said Monday morning, wiping away tears. “I’ve been on the phone with the insurance company all morning. I don’t know if I’m going to be able to get a rental (car). It’s just sickening to me to get up and see this in the morning.
“I just want to get this repaired and move on.”
That could take some time, Plowden said. Along with damage to the vehicles, the crash caused the Plowden’s home to shift. The gas in the house had to be shut off by the Abbeville Fire Department. The Plowdens are able to remain in the home.
“We can stay in the house,” Plowden said. “We are going to have to get a plumber after everything is cleared out. I have already gotten in touch with a plumber. They are saying it is a low house so they are not sure if they are going to be able to do this job. We are going to have to find a plumber who can take care of that. We are going to have to find someone to get the house back on its base.”
Like his wife, Cleveland Plowden said the fact that no one was killed is the best positive to take away. There is also a simple lesson to take away.
“Don’t drink and drive,” he said strongly. “This is the kind of thing that happens when you do that.
“You just can’t drink and drive.”