On 200 South Cherry Street in Flushing, MI, sits a classic American diner named Flushing A, formerly known as The Flushing A&W. It originally started as part of the A&W franchise founded in 1965 by Larry Melancon, a former retail jeweler looking to change his career direction. The diner is famously known for their signature root beer and classic red sauce hot dogs. In 2010, Flushing's A&W branched apart from the franchise and became an independent restaurant known as the Flushing A. Decades later, the now independent Flushing A still serves these traditional favorites and is still a well loved joint.
On the evening of July 27, Flushing Michigan's Flushing A hosted a full crowd. All was well and could be refereed to as "normal," until around 6:30 p.m. claimed one of the waitresses working on that Wednesday night, Gabby Guzak. Without warning, an alleged intoxicated driver plowed through the side of the take-out wall denting in the wall and challenging the safety of the diner. This sent a wave of commotion throughout the restaurant.
Guzak describes the driver as a male in his early 50s. The crash caused obvious structural damage that was threatening to the safety of the employees and the individuals the Flushing A was hosting. Guzak states that a man who was dining knew his way around construction so he drove to a local Home Depot to purchase a support beam that held the diner intact. This unnamed man preformed somewhat of a Samaritan act out of the generosity of his own heart. Staff worked hard to have everyone evacuate the building in case the roof were to collapse. Thankfully no one was injured, not even the driver.
Flushing A managed to not lay off their workers but it was ordered that no one was to work or visit the restaurant until the damage is fully repaired. Flushing A was expected to reopen on Wednesday, August 3. The damage has been repaired and the building is now safe enough to allow all workers and customers to carry on normally.
Flushing A is not allowing this little tragedy to affect them in the long run. The Flushing A is not expected to lose any regular customers from this mishap. Although the cost it took to repair the damage is unknown, it is expected that all money will be earned back to the restaurant. The diner is still planning to host their annual classic car cruises, the most recent one will happen on August 20, they'll be expecting a great turnout as per usual.
