Unlucky Lotto Player Gets Tickets From ‘Drive Through’

A man out to buy lottery tickets Wednesday kept his eyes on the prize, even after his car smashed through a plate-glass window at a drugstore, sent an ice-cream freezer and copy machine flying and clipped two startled customers.

“I heard the squealing of tires and all of a sudden an explosion,” said Larry Beierle, owner of Larry’s Pharmacy on Avenida Vaquero in San Clemente. “It was a friend of mine coming over to buy a Lotto ticket.”

No one was seriously injured in the 11:45 a.m. mishap. The two customers were treated at a nearby hospital and released.

“The car ended up in front of the register,” Beierle said.

The Nissan was being driven by Janis Triebel, who was taking George Gearn, 74, to buy $10 worth of lottery tickets.

Triebel told Beierle that her sandal got tangled with the accelerator, causing her to lose control of the car.

Gearn, who was trapped in the car for 45 minutes, kept asking for Lotto tickets, even while rescuers were working to extricate him. “I told him to at least wait until I could get the electricity restored,” Beierle said.

Gearn finally got his $10 worth of tickets. Triebel bought the same number for herself, and shop owner Beierle bought $25 worth, just to calm his nerves.

“It was just one of those days,” he said after the excitement was over.

“Just another piece of life.”