Police Car Crashes into Legendary Diner

Police Car Crashes into Legendary Diner
George’s Diner on Coney Island Avenue with shattered storefront. Liena Zagare/Bklyner.

FLATBUSH — Yesterday, around 10.30 a.m., at 753 Coney Island Avenue right at Cortelyou Road, a police car swerved into George’s Diner, a local neighborhood staple, shattering the business’ front window.

“We’re eating over here, 10:30 in the morning, it was nice and quiet, and then, a big explosion at the window,” Michael Papazaharias, the co-owner of the diner, told us. “I see a patrol car hit the front of the store, broke the glass, the tables were upside down. I said, ‘what happened guys?’, but no one was able to talk, they were in shock.”

The owner told us nobody got hurt, and there was just structural damage to the storefront, “it was an accident.” The diner will be closed until further notice as they wait for repair estimates and receive a permit to do work on the storefront.

The diner itself opened in 1956 and was the first in Brooklyn to be open 24 hours.

Police told us there were minor injuries to two officers in the car, who were taken to Maimonides Medical Center after the incident. Police said they did not know why the car swerved into the building and, currently, no criminality is suspected.

Watch video of a witness at the scene of the incident:

Vehicle Crashed Into Building @CitizenApp
Coney Island Ave & Cortelyou Rd Yesterday 10:44:31 AM EST