Coronavirus: Car smashes into pub hours before reopening
A car smashed through the front of a pub hours before it was due to open for the first time in nearly four months.
The owners of the Swan Inn near Ashford in Kent were woken by a "terrible bang" at about 02:00 BST as a Land Rover crashed into the Grade-II building. Landlord Ray Perkins said he was "distraught," adding: "We just don't know why we had such bad luck." A 17-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of drink-driving and taking a vehicle without consent. The teenager and two other 17-year-olds were treated at hospital for minor injuries before being discharged, Kent Police said. Mr Perkins said: "We spent weeks getting the pub ready to open today and eight hours before we are due to open, this happens. How much bad luck can we have?" Landlady Ann Perkins said she heard an "horrendous noise and the actual floor in our bedroom dropped". The couple went downstairs to find "the car parked in the pub, with three youths in it" and the air thick with "smoke and dust from rubble," she said. While the interior of the pub is likely to remain closed for many months, Mr Perkins said the "show must go on" and they have opened to customers using marquees in the pub garden. Mrs Perkins said neighbours in the village of Little Chart had provided "incredible" support, delivering flowers and helping to clean the bar and glassware. Kent Police said: "Three 17-year-old boys, who were inside the vehicle, were taken to a local hospital to be treated for minor injuries before being discharged. "One of these teenagers has been arrested on suspicion of taking a vehicle without consent and drink driving."