At least 35 people were killed and 43 injured when a driver rammed his car into people exercising outside of a sports centre in a southern Chinese city.
A 62-year-old driver was detained as he attempted to flee the scene in Zhuhai, police said, after pedestrians were knocked down by a “small” vehicle.
Footage taken in the aftermath of the incident showed dozens of people lying on running tracks and surrounding fields, with shoes and items of clothes scattered across the grounds.
Many of the injured appeared to be wearing sports outfits, including the uniforms of local walking groups.
Caixin, a Chinese media outlet, reported that an SUV crashed into multiple fitness groups, hitting dozens of people. Most of them were middle-aged, it is understood, though teenagers and children were among the casualties, the outlet added.
“(The vehicle) struck all around, injuring people in various sections of the sports field’s circular track, across the eastern, southern, western, and northern areas,” a witness said.
Chinese authorities did not say whether it was an attack or an incident, though cries of “terrorist” could be heard as ambulances arrived at the scene.
Police said they had taken a man, surnamed Fan, into custody for allegedly driving a small car outside the Zhuhai Sports Centre shortly before 8pm on Monday evening.
The apparent hit-and-run occurred on the eve of the country’s premier aviation exhibition by the People’s Liberation Army, which is hosted in Zhuhai every year.
The Zhuhai Sports Centre is home to an outdoor running track and field and is visited daily by locals for a variety of sports and exercise groups.
It is closed until further notice, authorities said.
Violent crime is rare in China due to tight security and strict gun laws.
However, a rise in reports of knife attacks in large cities has drawn public attention to safety in public spaces.
In October, a knife attack in Beijing left five people wounded outside one of the city’s top primary schools. A month earlier, a Japanese student was fatally stabbed outside his school in Shenzhen.
More to follow
