A Spenard pizzeria got an unexpected delivery of its own early Wednesday: an SUV, which Anchorage police say had a drunk driver at the wheel, smashing through the storefront.
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Police spokeswoman Anita Shell said staff at Today's Pizza, at 4608 Lake Spenard Dr., reported the wreck at about 12:30 a.m., while the business was still open. Responding officers found a Saturn Vue SUV, driven by 50-year-old Frances Bennett, sitting inside the building.
"She drove through the front window of the restaurant and up to the main counter," Shell said. "No injuries were reported."
Kyoung Soo, an employee at Today's Pizza on duty at the time, was taking calls from insurers Wednesday morning. He said Bennett had "parked the car in front of my store" just prior to the crash.
Today's Pizza server David Linden said he and his boss had seen Bennett, sitting in her vehicle outside the restaurant, for at least half an hour prior to the crash.
About 10 minutes before the restaurant closed, Linden said, he was in the back area and his boss was sitting at a front cash register when he heard "a big loud noise." He came forward to find Bennett's SUV fully inside the restaurant, as both he and his boss tried to speak with the driver.
"When I approached her and asked her what was going on, she put the car in drive and attempted to keep driving," Linden said. "All the debris that she crashed into was blocking her, so the car wouldn't budge."
Linden called 911, and officers responded in about a minute. A tow truck removed the Vue from the restaurant less than an hour later.
Although the restaurant has already reopened, with a cleanup crew boarding up the shattered facade and the damages covered by insurers, Linden said he's just glad nobody was hurt during the wreck.
Officers arrested Bennett at the scene on a DUI charge, Shell said.