Car Drives Into Liverpool Crowd; Dozens Injured
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND (Worthy News) – A man was detained late Monday after he allegedly used his car to hit England’s soccer club Liverpool FC’s Premier League victory parade, leaving dozens in the city of Liverpool injured.
Authorities described the suspect as a 53-year-old white British man, saying he was detained at the scene of the collision on Water Street in the heart of the city, meters (feet) away from the Royal Liver Building and the town hall.
Witnesses said the accident occurred after roads had been reopened following the main parade.
“Scenes of jubilation with thousands of Liverpool fans lining the streets to celebrate their club’s Premier League victory were rapidly replaced with scenes of fear and confusion, as emergency services arrived on the street at about 6 p.m. [local time],” Britain’s The Guardian newspaper commented.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the scenes “appalling,” while Liverpool FC offered its “thoughts and prayers” to those affected by the incident.
Footage showed police cordons in place around the heavily littered road, with a significant police presence, ambulances, and a fire engine at the scene.
Dramatic images seen by Worthy News captured a driver purposely driving his vehicle into the crowd. The car was then stormed by an angry crowd and a person was being taken away on a stretcher.
DOZENS INJURED
About 30 people were reportedly treated for injuries or shock in an Italian restaurant opposite Liverpool town hall, around the corner from the scene of the collision.
The motive for the possible attack wasn’t immediately clear.
Witnesses were in shock. “I grabbed my daughter and dived out of the way,” recalled Matt Cole, a reporter for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) who happened to be on the scene.
“Just after 18:00 [local time], a car drove down Dale Street towards the Strand. This was about 10 minutes after the bus carrying the Liverpool team had passed by,” Cole recalled in remarks monitored by Worthy News.
“Thousands of people were walking down Dale Street when a commotion broke out, and people began screaming as a car drove through the crowd.”
The car, Cole added, “carried on, as it passed by men gave chase, the rear window was broken. An ambulance trying to make its way through the crowd was forced to stop by the size of the crowd, and this formed a barrier in the road, which forced the car to stop.”
The incident occurred shortly before Liverpool FC paraded the Premier League trophy, a moment that seemed all but forgotten as the extent of the tragedy became clear.
It came at a time of anxiety in numerous European cities after similar accidents in recent years that were often linked to acts of Islamic terrorism. An investigation into the reasons for Monday’s tragedy was still ongoing.
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