A 53-year-old man was detained Monday after he allegedly drove a vehicle into a crowd at the Liverpool Football Club trophy parade in Liverpool, England, injuring over two dozen people.
Police were called to the scene in the city center, more than 200 miles northwest of London, at about 1 p.m. ET (6 p.m. local time).
There were reports of a car colliding with “a number of pedestrians,” the Merseyside Police said on social media. “The car stopped at the scene and a male detained.” Police later said a 53-year-old White British man from the Liverpool area was arrested.
David Kitchen of the North West Ambulance Service said 27 patients were taken to the hospital, including four children. Three of the victims were being treated for serious injuries, Kitchen said at a news conference.
Assistant Chief Constable Jennifer Sims said she believes the man who was arrested was the driver of the vehicle, saying investigators also believe the incident was isolated and no other suspects are being sought. The incident is not being treated as terrorism, she said.
“It is vital that people do not speculate or spread misinformation on social media,” Sims said at the news conference, asking people to refrain from sharing any distressing footage.
Liverpool FC said in an earlier statement, “We are in direct contact with Merseyside Police regarding the incident on Water Street which happened towards the end of the trophy parade earlier this evening. Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been affected by this serious incident.”
Tens of thousands of fans had gathered for the parade Monday, lining the streets to watch Liverpool’s players display the Premier League trophy. Liverpool’s last league title came in 2020 but pandemic restrictions prevented a celebration at the time.
Harry Rashid, who was at the parade with his wife and two young daughters, told The Associated Press a car began ramming people about 10 feet away from him.
“It was extremely fast,” Rashid said. “Initially, we just heard the pop, pop, pop of people just being knocked off the bonnet of a car.”
Another witness, Luke Dutch, told CBS News the driving seemed “definitely intentional” and the “driver just shut the door and didn’t seem to care” before running over people.
Photos from the scene showed multiple ambulances and first responders, and an ambulance service said it was responding to the incident.
North West Ambulance Service “is supporting an incident in Liverpool city centre, following reports of a road traffic collision,” the organization said in a statement. “We are currently assessing the situation and working with other members of the emergency services. Our priority is to ensure people receive the medical help they need as quickly as possible.”
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U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer wrote on social media that “the scenes in Liverpool are appalling.”
“My thoughts are with all those injured or affected,” he wrote. “I want to thank the police and emergency services for their swift and ongoing response to this shocking incident.”
The Merseyside Police said an investigation into the collision was underway.
Police identified the suspect as White, in a possible decision to prevent misinformation from flooding social media.
“We would ask people not to speculate on the circumstances surrounding tonight’s incident on Water Street in Liverpool city centre,” the police wrote on social media. “Extensive enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances leading up to the collision.”
Last summer, a teen in the nearby town of Southport killed three girls in a stabbing rampage at a dance class and wounded 10 others, including two adults. An incorrect name of the suspect was spread on social media and people said he was an asylum seeker. In fact, he had been born in the U.K. Rioting spread across England and Northern Ireland, targeting Muslims and refugees in hotels of asylum seekers, and lasting about a week.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
Emmet Lyons and
contributed to this report.