Chaos at Topsail Road McDonald's drive-thru, 3 sent to hospital

Man who got lost during late-night walk found in wooded area

Three people were treated at hospital in St. John's early Monday morning after two collisions at a McDonald's drive-thru in the west end of the city, amid a commotion that included yelling, threats and crashing trucks.

The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said it got a call at 12:12 a.m. about some "unknown trouble" at the Topsail Road McDonald's.

When officers arrived, they found two vehicles and the restaurant's drive-thru were extensively damaged. A witness said two trucks and a car had been involved in the melee.

Three people were taken to hospital for treatment, although police said their lives were not at stake.

The RNC told CBC News Monday afternoon that it believes a domestic assault occurred in a truck that struck other vehicles.

During an argument, the couple tried to leave the scene quickly.

While no charges have yet been laid, the RNC said the matter is under investigation, and that officers are interviewing witnesses.

Witness describes yelling, collisions

Darryl Reddy, who was parked near the McDonald's at the time, said he and his girlfriend knew something was going on when they heard yelling coming from the other side of the parking lot.

"The next thing I saw was the red truck repeatedly rear-ending a grey car coming around the corner," he said.

"The grey car swerved out of the way and the truck suddenly accelerated first making a turn towards where I was parked, then a sharp turn directly into the second red truck."

He said the man driving the first truck then jumped out and screamed at his girlfriend.

Reddy said he ran to check on the passengers of the vehicles that were hit, and then called 911.

"The couple that drove the truck attempted to leave but were stopped," he said. "The truck hit the other with a great deal of force and the passenger was in a lot of pain in her legs."

Reddy said "there was a lot of commotion" at the scene, and that among the statements he heard was a claim by the female passenger that she was being assaulted.

"What I heard happened was [that] the male and female were fighting, the male was allegedly choking the female and she grabbed the wheel in a attempt to stop from being choked," he told CBC News.

During the ordeal, Reddy even feared for his own safety.

"There was screaming from all directions," he said.

"An angry male [was] roaming around looking like he wanted to hurt anyone who went near him and the victim in the drive-thru screaming in pain."

The RNC, St. John's Regional Fire Department and paramedics responded to the incident.

Police say their investigation is ongoing.