Family that usually dine al fresco were sitting inside this time when crash happened

He usually sits in the alfresco area of the eatery with his family.

But the cabby, who wanted to be known only as Mr Richard, said they had to sit inside The Roti Prata House last Sunday as all the outdoor seats were taken.

They were fortunate.

Minutes later, a car crashed into a nearby green metal railing, injuring two diners seated outside the Upper Thomson Road eatery.

Mr Richard, 49, father of a nine-year-old girl and an 11-year-old boy, told The New Paper: "We were very lucky to be sitting inside that day. We could have been hurt in the accident."

The Singapore Civil Defence Force was alerted about the incident at 6.15pm and it sent two ambulances.

TNP understands that two diners, both men, suffered wounds on their foreheads from flying fragments during the crash.

Two women, believed to be occupants of the car, were also hurt. One of them had a wound on her right thumb while the other complained of pain in her left shoulder.

All four were conscious when they were taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

Police investigations are ongoing.

LOST CONTROL

A waiter at The Roti Prata House, Mr Rilwan Akebar Ali, 39, told TNP that the accident was the first he has encountered in the 11 years he has worked there.

He was serving customers inside the restaurant when he heard a crash outside.

He rushed out and was shocked to see the car had slammed into the metal railing about 5m from the restaurant.

Mr Rilwan said: "A friend of mine told me he saw the car making a turn from the opposite side of the road. The driver lost control of the vehicle, went against the flow of traffic and crashed.

"Two of our diners were bleeding from their heads. I passed them some tissue paper to clean their wounds. There was a lot of blood."

Chinese evening paper Shin Min Daily News reported that the diners were hit by glass shards from the car's shattered windscreen.

Mr Rilwan said the restaurant will continue setting up tables outside.

He added: "This is a one-off incident. I don't think it will happen again."

But Mr Richard is not taking any chances.

"We will continue to patronise this restaurant but will sit inside."

- Additional reporting by Melanie Heng

This article was first published on Jan 5, 2016.
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