March 28, 2024

Vehicle crashes into downtown Newton restaurant

Authorities say no one in the restaurant or the car were seriously injured

An SUV crashed into the front entrance of April's Diner on Tuesday, June 6 in downtown Newton.

No injuries were reported after an SUV crashed through the front entrance of a restaurant this afternoon in downtown Newton.

Newton News witnessed the aftermath of the collision, which happened around 4:41 p.m. June 6 during the Newton Farmers Market. The restaurant, April’s Diner, opened late February this year, taking over the space previously occupied by Midtown Cafe. The diner is located on the east side of the town square.

Officers of the Newton Police Department arrived on scene shortly after the crash and determined there were no serious injuries, even the two individuals who were in the vehicle. Crews from the Newton Fire Department spread absorbents onto a green fluid coming from an underground pipe.

Representatives from Newton Main Street controlled spectators from entering the business or getting too close to the broken glass strewn across the sidewalk.

Jack Hatch, owner of the Hotel Maytag where April’s Diner resides, did not know the estimated damages as of press time Wednesday afternoon, but he did say an adjuster would be on-site soon to survey the damages. Hatch said the plan is to board up the exposed area of the building until repairs can be made.

“We’re getting ServiceMaster in there to clean up any of the damage, and we hope (April’s Diner) will be back in business pretty soon,” Hatch said. “…We’re on top of it and we’re going to get them back in business as quickly as possible.”

Christopher Braunschweig

Christopher Braunschweig

Christopher Braunschweig has a strong passion for community journalism and covers city council, school board, politics and general news in Newton, Iowa and Jasper County.