Pickup truck crashes through New Smyrna Beach restaurant

NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. — Police are investigating after a pickup truck crashed through a New Smyrna Beach restaurant just after midnight Friday morning.

New Smyrna Beach police said the truck drove into the Sandbar Café, located at 1500 S. Dixie Freeway.

>>> STREAM CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS LIVE <<<

Officers said there is an open and active criminal investigation into the crash.

Police said the driver was taken to the hospital following the crash.

Read: National Doughnut Day: Do-nut miss out on these deals today

The restaurant posted on Facebook that they would “not be opening until further notice.”

Video of the inside of the restaurant shows that the damage goes from the front of the building all the way through to the back.

Owner Spyros Tryfonopoulos said he’s shocked that the truck hit the building as hard as it did, skirting between a palm tree and the restaurant’s sign.

Photos: Pickup truck plows through New Smyrna Beach restaurant

“I mean it looked pretty nice before,” the owner said. “Right now, as you can see, it’s a lot of damage.”

He said he’s focused on getting his employees back on their feet and keeping his customers full as soon as possible.

“I don’t know if it’s gonna be two months, three months, four months,” he said. “However long it is, we’re gonna try to stick it out and, you know, obviously, cost is a major factor.”

ExpandAutoplay

Image 1 of 14

Sandbar Café damage New Smyrna Beach police said the truck drove into the Sandbar Café just after midnight Friday morning. (WFTV.com News Staff)

Stay tuned to Eyewitness News for updates.

Click here to download the free WFTV news and weather apps, click here to download the WFTV Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.

©2023 Cox Media Group