Almost 50 people, including four children, were injured on Monday after a driver plowed into a crowd that had been celebrating Liverpool F.C.’s Premier League title.
A driver plowed a car into a crowd of pedestrians in England who were celebrating Liverpool’s Premier League victory at a parade on Monday attended by hundreds of thousands of people.
Here is what we know.
What happened?
The Merseyside Police said they were contacted about 6 p.m. on Monday local time after reports that a car had hit the crowd.
Video shared on social media shows a dark-color vehicle with a broken rear window swerving into the crowd and hitting parade-goers, leaving people on the ground. The video shows people rushing to aid the victims, including some who were trapped beneath the vehicle, and surrounding the vehicle once it stopped.
Video also shows witnesses attempting to stop the vehicle, with one person prying open the driver’s-side door before a man in the driver’s seat slams the door shut and accelerates into the crowd.
At a news conference on Monday night, Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims of the Merseyside Police said: “What I can tell you is that we believe this to be an isolated incident and we are not currently looking for anyone else in connection with it. The incident is not being treated as terrorism.”
Who is the suspect?
The police said that a 53-year-old British man from the Liverpool area had been arrested after the car stopped at the scene. “We believe him to be the driver of the vehicle,” Ms. Sims said at the news conference.
What do we know about the injured?
At least 47 people were injured in the crash, including four children, the ambulance service said on Monday night. Twenty-seven of them were taken to hospitals, two of whom — including one child — had sustained serious injuries.
Twenty others were treated at the scene with minor injuries. A paramedic on a cycle was also struck by the vehicle, but did not sustain any serious injuries.
Four people — including a child — were temporarily trapped under the vehicle, the fire and rescue service said.
Officials did not identify any of the victims.
Where did it happen?
The ramming happened along Water Street in the Liverpool city center, near the end of the 10-mile parade route.
What have officials said?
“The scenes in Liverpool are appalling,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain wrote on social media. “My thoughts are with all those injured or affected.”
Liverpool F.C. wrote on X that it was in direct contact with the police. “We will continue to offer our full support to the emergency services and local authorities who are dealing with this incident,” it said.
