Apr 22, 2008 6:03 am US/Pacific
SUV Plows Into El Pollo Loco In Canoga Park
CANOGA PARK, Calif.
A restaurant employee and a pregnant woman are recovering from minor injuries after a hit-and-run driver lost control of her vehicle and crashed into the side of an El Pollo Loco restaurant in Canoga Park on Monday night.
The accident took place on the southwest corner of Topanga Canyon and Roscoe boulevards around 11:15 p.m., according to Officer Mary Brady of the Los Angeles Police Department Valley Traffic Station.
A female driver in a dark SUV was heading southbound on Topanga Canyon Boulevard when she apparently lost control as she attempted to turn westbound onto Roscoe Boulevard, Brady said.
The SUV jumped the curb on the southwest corner and crashed halfway through the side of the building, she said.
A pregnant woman inside the El Pollo Loco heard the crash and ran to another section of the restaurant, injuring her ankle as she fell to the ground, Brady said. The woman was transported to a hospital with a minor head injury and some ankle pain, Brady said.
The SUV pushed an ice machine and knocked down an employee who was standing behind the counter as it plowed into the restaurant. The employee sustained a minor head pain and complained of back pain.
After the crash, the driver fled the vehicle by foot, Brady said. Police impounded the SUV and went to the registered owner's residence, but no one was home, she said.
A city engineer was called to the scene to inspect the structural damage after the accident. The building was then red-tagged, Brady said.
"It will be boarded up and probably take about a week to repair," she said.
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