Nine people were injured after an SUV crashed into a Lake Forest restaurant Sunday afternoon.

Sheriff’s deputies responded around 12:15 p.m. to Inka Grill, at 23600 Rockfield Blvd., after the car traveled through the front of the restaurant, Sgt. Gerard McCann said.

Paramedics treated and released six people at the scene. Three others were hospitalized with injuries that were not life-threatening.

Anna Scandalos, the restaurant’s owner, said she was at church in Long Beach when the crash happened. The staff called her panicked after the SUV had crashed through the front window of the restaurant, leaving shattered glass all over the dining room.

Scandalos said none of her employees were injured, and the restaurant’s kitchen was mostly unscathed. The dining room received the most damage and could be closed for months for repairs.

Scandalos hoped she and the staff can clean up, take inventory of the damage and begin work on insurance paperwork. In the short term, she wants to reopen the kitchen for takeout and catering orders and clear a path for staff to safely serve customers on the restaurant’s patio.

“I’m hopeful that we can stay in business,” Scandalos said. “My employees are devastated. That’s our home away from home, and they’ve been working for us for decades.”

The crash’s cause remained under investigation, but officials said they believe it was an accident.