About 150 people had gathered to wait for the start of the carnival near the town of La Louvière when the vehicle unexpectedly approached them. In addition to the deaths, 12 people were seriously injured.
In Belgium, at least four people have died after a car crashed into a crowd on Sunday morning in the village of Strépy-Bracquegnies in Wallonia.
Mayor of the neighboring town of La Louvière Jacques Gobertin said Bel to RTL (switch to another service)that about 150 people had gathered in the area to wait for the start of the annual carnival when a vehicle unexpectedly approached them.
– The car accelerated and then drove into the crowd. The driver continued his journey after that, but he was caught, Gobert says.
In addition to at least four deaths, 12 and 20 minor injuries were seriously injured in the crowd.
Mayor Gobert says he arrived on the scene shortly after what happened.
– I saw bodies on the road, people in pain … You can’t imagine that, and unfortunately it has happened.
The collision occurred at five a.m. local time.
One person arrested
– We heard a huge noise and the car literally drove inside a crowd. I didn’t think I would ever see anything like it. The car accelerated, and when I realized what it was all about, there were already people on the ground. People shouted, it was horrible, Bel RTL news reporter testified Fabrice Collignon describes.
According to the local mayor, police have arrested one person. According to some data, there would have been two young people in the car.
The Belgian police describe the incident in the province of Hainaut as a disaster. The village of Strépy-Bracquegnies is located about 50 km from the capital Brussels.