Late Sunday night in Atlanta’s lively Little Five Points neighborhood, a car driven by a local bar employee mounted a crowded sidewalk, plowed into nearby buildings and finally became wedged in front of Niramish Indian Cuisine after tearing through the streets near Moreland Avenue and Euclid Avenue. What could have been far worse ended without serious injuries, but the chaos left business owners stunned and neighbors buzzing.
Just before 2:30 a.m., onlookers outside the Yacht Club saw a black sedan leave the road and head straight onto the sidewalk where dozens often stroll between bars and shops. A bystander’s video captures the car swerving past tables and pedestrians before hitting a building and finally coming to a stop in front of the small Indian restaurant.
Witness Megen Chey, who recorded the scene, said people had to leap over barricades to get out of the way as the vehicle barreled through the busy area. “My reaction was, ‘Girl, stop, you’re stuck,’” Chey recalled, reflecting both the shock and the narrow escape from what could have been a much grimmer outcome.
Police were on the scene shortly afterward. According to the Atlanta Police Department, the driver was identified as Attaya Green, a 27-year-old employee at the Little 5 Pub. Officers arrested her without further incident and later booked her on multiple charges including reckless driving, failure to report an accident, hit and run, driving with an expired license, no license on person, and striking fixed objects. Authorities also noted in the report that there was no immediate indication she was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
Inside the neighborhood the mood was part relief and part disbelief. Little Five Points is known for its tightly packed streets flanked with small businesses and bars, places where tourists and locals mingle late on weekend nights. Owners of establishments struck by the car surveyed dents and broken storefronts Monday morning, grateful that the early hour meant few pedestrians were nearby when the crash happened.
In a statement, Little 5 Pub confirmed Green worked there but said she was fired after the incident. The restaurant stressed it was cooperating with authorities and offered support to affected neighboring businesses.
No serious injuries were reported, and investigators are still piecing together exactly why the vehicle left the roadway and headed down the sidewalk. For now, the community counts its luck and begins repair work on the damaged facades that line one of Atlanta’s most eclectic blocks.
