Concrete blocks fortify the front of an Auburn doughnut shop, and for good reason.

Motorists seem to occasionally hit the Donut Star, situated just off a sweeping curve at 914 Auburn Way S.

The latest episode came Friday morning when a speeding, suspected drunk driver crashed into the shop, nearly hitting two customers as they were entering the small store.

Auburn Police arrested the driver, a man in his 40s, for investigation of DUI.

Indoor and outdoor store surveillance cameras captured the dramatic crash. As the truck plowed into the side of the shop, a woman was about to enter the store and a man had just passed through the door. Miraculously, the woman avoided the truck’s blow, and the quick-thinking man jumped over the counter to avoid being hit.

Neither was injured, but both were shaken after the flying debris had settled.

May Poy, who co-manages the shop, was standing behind the counter in the cashier area when the truck made impact with the concrete barriers. The force, she said, was so great that it knocked over a table.

“I just froze,” Poy said of the incident. “I didn’t know what was going on. I didn’t know there were customers outside. … I can’t imagine what it was like being in that spot.”

Poy said her shop has been struck before, at least three times – each time at night – in her three years working there. In one of those incidents, a vehicle grazed the outside of the store and took out a light post, she said.

This time, it was windows, a door and framing.

Poy said her business has insurance but expects expensive repairs.

Despite the damage, the store opened for business Saturday. Loyal customers expressed their relief and support for Poy. Sales, she said, were brisk.

As for those concrete blocks in front of the building? They minimized the damage, police said.

The male customer who escaped the crash scene came by the next day to check up on Poy.

“He wanted to make sure I was OK,” Poy said. “I’m just glad everyone’s OK, but emotionally the woman is shook up. … She came so close (to being hit).”

See the surveillance video here.

May Poy, co-manager of the Donut Star, wasn’t hurt when a drunk driver slammed his pickup truck into her shop. The impact, however, severely damaged the store. MARK KLAAS, Auburn Reporter