Car hits other vehicles in front of downtown Lexington Hyatt. Malfunction may be to blame.

Downtown traffic was temporarily snarled Friday when a driver reported her accelerator stuck, causing her to hit other cars in front of the Hyatt Regency Hotel on West High Street, police said.

A driver veered off the road in her black Ford Focus just after the South Broadway and High Street intersection and struck a light pole and two cars that were sitting in the valet roundabout directly in front of the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Lexington police Sgt. Bryan Jared said at the scene. The driver suffered minor injuries, and no pedestrians were struck.

“It could have been a lot worse than it was,” said Jared who added that there were many pedestrians in the area near the hotel lobby. The driver told police after the accident that “her accelerator stuck.” She was taken to the hospital.

Ron van Haaren, the general manager at the Hyatt, said the driver had a laceration on her arm, and added that the hotel itself wasn’t affected by the accident.

The front of the Ford Focus was totally destroyed and one of the vehicles in the roundabout suffered significant damage to its rear bumper. Kentucky Utilities personnel were on sight to repair the fallen light pole.

Jared Bryan said Sunday that his car—a fourth vehicle—was also involved in the crash. The Ford Focus side swiped his vehicle before hitting the light pole and the other vehicles in front of the Hyatt. Bryan said his car was damaged on the passenger side, but he was not injured.

This story was originally published July 13, 2018 at 12:11 PM.