A young female driver trying to park outside a South Side restaurant instead hit the gas, jumped the curb and sent her car crashing through the building's wall on Monday afternoon, scattering glass over at least one person inside. San Antonio police responded around 2:12 p.m. to the 9500 block of the Poteet-Jourdanton Freeway near Loop 410, where the vehicle had come to rest partially inside the dining area.
Police said the driver appeared to have accidentally pressed the gas pedal instead of the brake while attempting to park, according to WOAI. The impact sent the car over the curb and into the restaurant, where a person inside was left covered in glass shards from the shattered storefront.
No Major Injuries Reported Despite Scare
Police reported no major injuries from the crash, even though the scene left at least one patron dusted in broken glass. Fire officials said the driver herself may have suffered minor injuries, though the extent of any harm to her was not detailed. It remains unclear whether the driver will face a fine or a ticket in connection with the crash, per the same outlet's report.
Monday's crash is the latest in a string of vehicle-into-building incidents that have rattled San Antonio in recent months. Last week, San Antonio police arrested a woman accused of driving into two people near a Northwest Side restaurant, killing one of them, according to KSAT. That case, unlike Monday's South Side crash, is being investigated as an intentional act rather than a parking mishap.
A Familiar Kind of Accident
Pedal-confusion crashes like Monday's have become a recurring hazard nationwide. In March, a Texas barber shop owner began weighing safety upgrades to his storefront after a driver mistakenly hit the gas instead of reverse and crashed through his shop, as People reported at the time. A similar scenario played out at a New Jersey restaurant, where a driver trying to park reportedly hit the gas instead of the brake and sent her vehicle into brunch diners, according to The Independent.
San Antonio has also seen vehicles crash into restaurants under very different circumstances. KENS 5 reported that a driver crashed into Jimador #2 Mexican Restaurant on the city's Northeast Side, damaging the building, in an incident separate from Monday's South Side crash. No further details on that earlier case were available.
For now, the circumstances of Monday's South Side crash remain largely as police described them: a young driver, a mistaken pedal, and a restaurant wall that gave way. Whether the driver will ultimately be cited has not yet been determined.
