Vehicle Rams US Christmas Parade, Killing 5, Injuring Dozens
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
(Worthy News) – A vehicle rammed into a Christmas parade in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, killing five people and injuring dozens Sunday, prompting police to fire shots at the suspect, several sources confirmed.
A red sport utility vehicle (SUV) plowed into marchers in Waukesha, 20 miles (32 kilometers) west of Milwaukee, made more than 20 victims, said town police chief Dan Thompson.
A total of 11 adults and 12 children were struck during the annual Christmas parade here after 4:40 p.m. local time, according to Waukesha police. A person of interest was in custody, and police have not ruled out terrorism as a motive.
Waukesha is a city within the Milwaukee metropolitan area.
Footage on social media showed the red SUV speeding toward marchers in Waukesha shortly before 5 pm on Sunday. In another video, police appeared to fire the exact vehicle as it crashed through street barriers, Worthy News monitored.
“Tonight was a traumatic situation for the city of Waukesha,” the city’s mayor, Shawn Reilly, said in a brief appearance in front of reporters. “We don’t have all the details; we can’t provide details at this point.”
Angelito Tenorio, a local alderman running for Wisconsin state treasurer, said he had been at the parade with his family when the red SUV approached the crowd.
ZOOMING SPEED
“We saw an SUV crossover, just put the pedal to the metal and just zooming full speed along the parade route,” he told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “We heard a loud bang and just deafening cries and screams from people who are struck by the vehicle,” Tenorio added.
“And then we saw people running away or stopping crying, and there, there are people on the ground who looked like they’d been hit by the vehicle.”
Police officers ran down the street, telling parade watchers to take shelter in stores, the newspaper explained.
One witness said the driver hit the “Dancing Grannies,” and at least one person flipped over the hood of the SUV, according to WISN-TV, an ABC network affiliate.
Photos and videos of Waukesha circulating showed police cars, and ambulances crowding a street decked out with Christmas lights in the aftermath of the incident.
Waukesha mayor Reilly told local media he did not believe there was any current danger to the public. The motive of what appeared to be a deliberate attack was not immediately clear and was being investigated.
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