A LORRY driver died and a woman was injured after a truck crashed into a parked car and ploughed into a busy restaurant.
A LORRY driver died and a woman was injured after a truck crashed into a parked car and ploughed into a busy restaurant.
It's understood the lorry driver collapsed at the wheel before the accident.
The 57-year-old later died in hospital of a suspected heart attack.
Emergency services rushed to the Toby Carvery restaurant in Strathclyde Park, Motherwell, at around 2.20pm yesterday.
Fire officers said the lorry left the A725, mounted the grass verge and collided with a parked car and the wall of the restaurant.
The lorry driver and a woman diner were rushed to Monklands Hospital in Airdrie.
The woman suffered leg injuries from falling debris caused by the crash.
The accident caused major structural damage to the restaurant and health and safety officials were at the scene of for most of the afternoon.
Last night stunned witnesses told how customers fled in terror from the restaurant.
David Kelly, 36, from Bothwell, Lanarkshire, said: "I had been walking in Strathclyde Park when I heard an almighty crash.
"I saw the lorry sticking out of the side of the restaurant.
"The customers and staff came pouring out of an emergency exit.
"They looked very relieved and they were very lucky.
"It was a scene of total carnage. I'm amazed more people weren't seriously injured.
"There were four fire engines and lots of police. It was being treated as a major incident, as far as I could see."
A spokesman for the Toby Carvery said: "The impact of the crash was in an area of the restaurant that was not in full use.
"So thankfully none of our customers or staff was seriously injured, although everyone was shocked by the accident.
"Our staff quickly and safely evacuated the restaurant and called the emergency services."
A Strathclyde Fire Brigade spokesman said: "The incident commander, in conjunction with restaurant staff, instigated an immediate evacuation of the affected area and it was discovered that a member of the public sustained leg injuries caused by falling debris from the restaurant wall."
A police spokeswoman said a post-mortem on the lorry driver would be held at a later date.
