'Terrifying': Two injured as SUV slams into Fair Lawn restaurant with diners inside
Two people were injured Sunday afternoon after a maroon SUV plunged into the Green Dragon restaurant in Fair Lawn, smashing through the front windows and landing next to tables of terrified diners.
The vehicle struck the restaurant, at 19-01 Fair Lawn Ave., at around 5:30 p.m. A waitress and a customer sustained minor injuries and were taken to a hospital by ambulance, police said.
Justin Portelli, of Fair Lawn, was sitting in the back of the restaurant, having dinner with his wife, mother-in-law and two sons, ages 5 and 8, with his back to the window.
"I first heard screaming, and then broken glass, and then everything was shaking," he said. "We felt our booth pushed further away from its spot. Then I turned around and the car was coming to rest a couple of feet behind us."
"It was the scariest moment of our lives," Portelli added. "It was terrifying."
The restaurant, which serves sushi and Asian cuisine, was about half-full at the time of the crash, he said.
Portelli and other witnesses said an elderly woman was driving the vehicle. It's unclear what caused the driver to strike the Green Dragon, and police said they could not provide further details.
An earlier police report said three people were injured, but only two people were taken to a hospital for treatment, police said late Sunday.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: SUV slams into Green Dragon restaurant in Fair Lawn NJ
