A mother and daughter in Cape Breton's Whitney Pier are homeless after a snowplow destroyed their apartment Monday morning.

Cape Breton Regional Police say the driver lost control and landed in a bedroom, just metres from where one of the tenants had been sleeping.  

Cindy Henry says she was stunned when she saw how close the snowplow had come to hitting her friend.

“I couldn’t imagine my life without her,” said an emotional Henry as she wiped away tears. “That plow was only five feet away from the couch where she was sleeping. It was pretty scary when we actually came here to see it.”

Shelley Crummey, another friend of the homeowner, says the mother and daughter are shaken by the incident.

“She's quite upset. When a snowplow goes through your house, how would you feel?” Crummey said.

The incident caused extensive damage to the building and municipal officials confirm the structure is now compromised.

Cape Breton Regional Police have seized the vehicle and are awaiting a mechanical inspection. The Nova Scotia Department of Labour has also been notified.

Witnesses say the tractor also took out a stop sign, clipping the pole and crossing the main road before colliding with the building.

“We've called in a professional engineer to do an assessment of the building,” said Paul Burt of the Cape Breton Regional Municpality. “That engineer indicated the structure has been compromised. We are working with the owner to have it boarded up.”

Burt says he's now working with regional housing to find accommodations for the affected tenants.