RUMFORD — Seven vehicles were damaged Tuesday morning when a local woman attempted to reverse direction on Andover Road by driving through Duke’s Auto Sales parking lot.

Neither Janet Wilson, 52, nor her passenger, Opal Varnum, 47, of Rumford, were injured, Rumford police Detective Sgt. James Bernard said on scene.

Bernard said Wilson was driving a 1996 Ford Explorer west on Andover Road when she decided to reverse direction at about 11:30 a.m. and pulled into the lot of Duke’s Auto Sales at 156 Andover Road.

Once on the plowed, snow-covered lot, however, Bernard said Wilson had trouble trying to get back onto the road and accelerated.

“She couldn’t get out of the parking lot,” he said.

The sport utility vehicle went past a fire hydrant and traveled several feet along the lot before catching dry pavement on the road, he said. Bernard said that caused the SUV to slingshot sideways into a silver 2008 Chevrolet station wagon, demolishing both vehicles.

The impact pushed the station wagon into a 1998 Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck. Other cars hit included:

* A 2009 Chevrolet Malibu, which sustained front and side damage.

* A 2008 Chevrolet wagon, which was pushed backward, damaging the garage door and the front and rear of the wagon.

* A 1965 Chevrolet panel truck in the garage bay. It had front bumper damage from the garage door being pushed into it.

* A 2007 Nissan Sentra, which had driver’s side damage.

The used car lot’s owner, Duke Dupont, witnessed the accident and said he’d never seen anything like it in the 30 years he’s been there.

“Not with the road dry, anyways,” he said. “I just saw her sliding into the lot. I didn’t see what happened before that. From what I gather, she was turning around.”

The Explorer came to rest beside three of the damaged cars, its passenger side crushed in.

Rumford police do not provide damage estimates. At first, Dupont roughly guessed the damage at $30,000, but then said he didn’t know for sure.

He estimated damage to the garage door to at least $1,000 and said he’d have to get a carpenter to secure it Tuesday afternoon.

Bernard said Wilson’s insurance would likely cover the damage. No charges are pending.

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