Melton pub opens again after car crashed into the building

The Kettleby Cross in Melton, part of the Wetherspoon chain EMN-190301-114541001

No-one was injured in the incident at The Kettleby Cross because members of staff were fortunately not close to where the vehicle struck the wall of the kitchen at the time it happened, at around 4pm.

Staff decided to close the Wilton Road pub, which had around 50 customers inside when the collision ocurred, but it reopened this morning for drinks only, with the kitchen unsafe to use at the moment.

Manager Dan MacCallum told the Melton Times: “It is frustrating to have to close but no-one was injured and that is the main thing.

Staff member Isaac Thompson inspects the damage caused to a wall of The Kettleby Cross pub by a car crashing into it EMN-190401-163033001

“There is substantial damage to our kitchen as a result of the crash and we are not sure at the moment how long it will be before we can serve food again.

“It was caused by a member of the public who was driving his car in the car park.

“We weren’t sure about the extent of the damage when it happened so we decided it would be safer to close.”

Building structure experts visited the pub yesterday and they said it was safe for the bar area to be reopened to customers from today but the kitchen will be out of bounds to staff.

Mr MacCallum added: “We are safe to open for drinks only.

“We’ve had quite a few calls from customers since it happened asking when we would be opening again.”