LAS FLORES – A car plowed through a gate shortly before 11:30 a.m. and plopped into the shallow end of a pool shared by nearby houses, said Capt. Steve Concialdi of the Orange County Fire Authority.

“Fortunately, there were no kids in the pool, because it was an overcast day,” Concialdi said. “The pool is often crowded with children.”

The driver, a 67-year-old woman, was not injured but the passenger, her husband who is in his 50s, complained of chest pain and was taken to a local hospital with minor injuries.

The Mission Viejo couple was able to get out of the car and pool.

California Highway Patrol spokesman Rafael Reynoso said the woman was driving the Toyota RAV4 southbound on Seacountry Lane near Antonio Parkway in unincorporated Las Flores when she veered right.

That took the car into a parking lot and through the fence – instead of following the roadway as it curved left.

“For an unknown reason, she kept driving in that direction,” Reynoso said.

Investigators do not believe alcohol or drugs were involved. It was about three hours before the car was removed from the pool.

Reynoso said the pool would be closed until it was drained and the surrounding area cleared from the crash.

Contact the writer: 714-796-7865 or afausto@ocregister.com