The Gunk Haus, a restaurant on South Street in this southern Ulster County community, caught fire after it was struck by an allegedly drunken driver, according to authorities.
William J. Judge, 47, of Highland, was alone in a 2019 Subaru about 9:40 p.m. Sunday when he lost control of the vehicle and crashed it into the front room of the restaurant at 387 South St. in Clintondale, according to the town of Lloyd Police Department.
Clintondale Fire Chief Ricky Brooks said Tuesday that the vehicle struck a 15-year-old extension of the building. He said the resulting blaze “caused significant fire damage and a lot of smoke damage to the bar and kitchen area” but was kept from spreading to the original structure, which was built in the early 1900s.
“It was a good save on that old structure,” he said.