1 person critically injured after car crashes into downtown Vancouver restaurant

One person is in critical condition after a driver crashed through the front window of a downtown Vancouver restaurant Saturday evening.

First responders were called to the scene on Smithe Street near Burrard Street around 7:30 p.m. and two people were transported to hospital, one in critical condition and one in stable condition, according to BC Emergency Health Services.

Dean Nelson was having dinner at Pacifico Pizzeria when he says the car rammed through the front window.

"All of a sudden all of this dust and debris started flying out of everywhere and we're like, ‘Oh my gosh what just happened?’” he recalled. “We thought a bomb had gone off or an earthquake – it was just unbelievable."

The Vancouver Police Department, in a statement, said the driver hit a cyclist before crashing into the building.

"The driver had his foot on the gas which caused the vehicle to accelerate into a business where a pedestrian coming out of the restaurant was also struck," a spokesperson said in an email.

Ken Oliver, the restaurant owner says while no one dining or working inside was hurt, the person on the sidewalk who was hit was a customer standing outside.

"The poor individual who was struck, he was out on the sidewalk, he was thrown through doors and essentially right at our general manager's feet,” said Oliver who received the call Saturday night.

Video from the scene Saturday evening shows the front of the restaurant has been badly damaged, with mangled metal and broken glass strewn on the sidewalk around a dark-coloured vehicle that is behind police tape.

But on Sunday morning, crews had cleaned up the area, covering the smashed glass window and doors with a white tarp.

Oliver expects the damage to his restaurant will cost tens of thousands of dollars to repair and says he doesn’t anticipate reopening until at least next month.

However, his primary concern is for his staff and not his bottom line. 

"In the restaurant business, you have a lot of students and people who really need their jobs," he said, adding, "You know how expensive it is to live in Vancouver."

According to a VPD spokesperson, the crash remains under investigation.