One woman was injured after an 80-year-old woman slammed her SUV through the front of a sushi restaurant in Grantville Monday evening.
Saddened and shaken, driver Mary Parkinson tried to piece together what led up to the accident, while the pieces of it lay in front of her. She drove her Honda Element through Kimmi's Sushi and Japanese Cuisine.
Robert Parkinson, who was sitting next to his wife at the time of the crash, said her foot slipped off the brake and onto the gas, rocketing the SUV through the front doors and into the lobby with dinner guests. The hole left in the restaurant stretched about 20 feet.
The collision caused a bench seat to pin one restaurant patron against the wall. The woman's injuries were minor, and she was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital as soon as emergency crews freed her, according to San Diego Fire-Rescue.
Kimmi's owner told NBC 7 she saw the SUV coming just before she was about to step into its path, nearly killing her.
Next door at Brooklyn Pizzeria, patrons were startled by the crash.
“We hear bang! You know, like someone hitting...like a bomb,” owner Joset Barest said.
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Robert said despite her age, his wife is a careful driver.
“We would back into something once in a while but they were fender benders,” he said.
Police verified their accounts, but they have decided to temporarily suspend Parkinson's valid driver's license.
“We have concern with any driver, whether young or old, not operating a vehicle safely. We'll take action to make sure they are," San Diego Police Lt. Paul Connelly said.
When asked if he thought his wife should be driving, Robert said, "I don't know what happened, but it sure did, and we are going to be very careful from now on."
