Truck driver crashes into crowded restaurant patio in downtown Loveland

LOVELAND, Ohio (WXIX) – A pickup truck driver plowed through a crowded patio in downtown Loveland Friday night, according to the Loveland-Symmes Fire Department.

Around 8:47 p.m., the driver barreled through the outdoor patio at Paxton’s Grill on West Loveland Avenue.

The restaurant was hosting a special celebration for Cinco de Mayo, according to its Facebook page.

The driver knocked the patio awning down. Multiple people suffered injuries described as minor.

It’s not clear whether the truck came into contact with anyone or whether the falling awning caused the injuries.

The truck driver fled the scene after the crash.

A fire department spokesperson described the aftermath as “very chaotic.”

Loveland police say they have identified the suspect vehicle by its license plate and are conducting a crash investigation.

Phillip Caster was sitting outside at a nearby bar when it happened.

“I heard this crash, and I looked up, and I seen this truck actually underneath the awning, and it’s like he hit it, stopped, and the next thing you see, he guns it and plows through the rest of the awning and the people underneath,” Caster said. “So I started running, chasing him down the street yelling, ‘Someone get his license! Someone get his number!’”

Caster continued: “The next thing I see is I’m running up the street to see if there was anyone hurt under the awning. About 20 people came up and lifted the awning up. Normally on a Friday night… Cinco de Mayo… man, so lucky more people weren’t injured or hurt or killed. Normally this place is packed! You just cannot believe that nobody else got hurt.”

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