No injuries in car accident involving Sycamore restaurant, Johnny’s Charhouse

By Melissa Mastrogiovanni

No injuries were reported after an elderly woman drove through a window at Johnny’s Charhouse in Sycamore Thursday.

“An elderly woman was trying to park her car and jumped the curb and went through the building,” said Marc Doty, Sycamore Assistant Fire Chief, at the scene.

No one inside Johnny’s Charhouse, 1950 DeKalb Ave. Suite A, was injured, Doty said. There was only one table in the back of the restaurant that was occupied at the time of the accident.

Fire crews were called to the scene around 11:53 a.m. and were able to free the woman within 15 to 20 minutes, Doty said.

“She was okay,” Doty said. “She said she didn’t have any injuries, so we wanted to make sure the area around the car was secure.”

The elderly woman was the only occupant in the vehicle and was checked by paramedics before being release, said Sycamore Police Lt. Darrell Johnson. The woman was not transported to the hospital, Johnson said.

“I don’t think they are anticipating any charges,” Johnson said. “It was just human error.”

Initially, workers at the neighboring business Country Financial, 1950 DeKalb Ave. Suite D, said they didn’t realize a car drove through the restaurant.

“At first it [the accident] sounded like thunder,” said Carly Malczyk, assistant at Country Financial.

Malczyk said the crash shook their building, and after looking at the scene outside her office, she called 911.

“For going through a brick wall, [the car] looks pretty good,” said Matt Reynolds, financial representative at Country Financial.

Johnson said the car was not drivable after the accident, however, and was towed away from the scene.

Johnny’s Charhouse is not expected to close; it will temporarily board up the opening, said Johnny’s Charhouse server Nolan Russell.