Beloved cook burned when car crashed into Puyallup burger joint faces long recovery
If anyone found themselves at Puyallup’s Don’s Drive-In for lunch or dinner, they could find beloved cook, Jiho Yoon, welcoming customers with a smile on his face. When a customer asked for his name, he would happily point to himself and say, “Brad Pitt.”
Yoon, 48, worked at the grill or fryer with an upbeat attitude, sometimes dancing to new school music with his coworkers, according to Andrew Peterson, whose two daughters work at the restaurant.
Everything changed for Yoon and the employees at Don’s when a black sedan crashed into the wall of Don’s Drive-In on Nov. 28. Yoon was standing close by and working at the deep fryer when the crash happened. The deep fryer was pushed three or four feet backwards into Yoon and pinned him against a wall. As a result, the hot oil splashed over Yoon’s body, severely burning him, Peterson said.
“I would say just below his ears, his neck, his torso, and both arms and one of his legs was covered in hot oil at that point,” Peterson said.
Some of the oil splashed on the owner of the restaurant, Yong Kim, as well as another employee. Their burns were not as severe as Yoon’s, Peterson said.
Once firefighters got Yoon out, he was taken to the Harborview Medical Center in Seattle where he remains hospitalized. Yoon had his first surgery a week ago and will have two more. Yoon is in stable condition. Kim drives Yoon’s parents from Federal Way to the hospital every day so they can see him, Peterson said.
The driver, a 64-year-old Bonney Lake man, was charged with three counts of vehicular assault while driving under the influence. The man told investigators he took medications and used cannabis earlier that morning. A meth pipe and cannabis were found in his possession during his arrest, according to charging documents.
A court commissioner set the suspect’s bail at $35,000, and he is currently out on bond. Peterson said considering the growing cost of Yoon’s medical expenses and the property damage, he believes that is a low bail and represents a “gross injustice.”
“It just seems really, really unfair to everybody involved. Everybody that was just working hard and having a pretty good day, and then this guy came and just ruined several lives. And now everybody’s out looking for a job, and all the damage to the building. Jiho will never be able to live life in the same way that he did,” he said.
Peterson said that Kim is networking to help find a job for the employees at Don’s Drive-In.
“I think the owner, Yong, even though she’s not obviously responsible for the car crash, she feels a lot of responsibility. So she’s trying to network with people she knows and trying to get everybody placed in a job quickly,” Peterson said.
He said that it will take about three to four months for the restaurant to fully rebuild. There is an espresso stand next to Don’s, which shared power with the restaurant until the crash. Peterson said the espresso stand also has to figure out how to get power back.
Following his first surgery, Yoon has a two-week recovery period at the hospital before his second surgery. Peterson’s daughter set up a GoFundMe, and they hope to raise enough money to help with Yoon’s lost income, medical expenses and living expenses.
The Jiho Yoon donation account was also set up at U.S. Bank for those who would like to donate in person. The money from the GoFundMe will also go to the account.
