Wallonia: At least six dead and dozens injured in a multiple hit-and-run in a Belgian town | International

The carnival celebration in the city of La Louvière, in Wallonia, the French-speaking region of Belgium, has ended in tragedy at dawn this Sunday. A car has rammed into a group of between 150 and 200 people who were gathering to start the party at high speed, killing six people, seriously injuring 10 others and leaving dozens more with bruises. The author of the outrage and his companion have been arrested. The prosecutor attached to the investigation has indicated that at this time the hypothesis that it is a terrorist attack is not a priority, as reported by the main Belgian media.

The outrage occurred around five in the morning when the participants in the carnival, a very traditional festival rooted in the area that was celebrated for the first time in two years due to the pandemic, were gathering near a sports center in Strépy- Bracquegnies, a town belonging to the Walloon municipality of La Louvière, to start the march. At that moment, a car with two occupants has rammed the group that was congregating. “A car that was traveling at high speed launched itself into the crowd that had gathered to attend [al carnaval]”, declared the mayor of the town, Jacques Gobert, who has indicated that the party was suspended. In principle, the carnival began this Sunday and lasted until Tuesday.

“The current balance is six people who died at the scene, 10 seriously injured, 10 less seriously injured and 17 slightly injured. There are about seventy people who were present during the incident. Now they are gathered at the sports center to be treated by the psychomedical and social assistance unit“, explained a medical director of emergencies in the area to local television.

“Horrible news from Strépy-Bracquegnies. A community that was preparing to celebrate a party was hit in the heart”, lamented the Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo, on the social network Twitter. “My thoughts are with the victims and their loved ones,” he added. Throughout the day De Croo is expected to visit La Louvière. He will also the kings of the Belgians, Felipe and Matilda.

The two detainees, born in 1988 and 1990, are natives of La Louvière. “The two people arrested have not yet been questioned. They are not known by the judicial authorities for similar acts. Various steps will still have to be taken in the investigation to clarify this tragedy and, in particular, a reconstruction, which will make it possible to establish the exact route of the vehicle and, eventually, determine the motive of the author or authors,” explained the deputy prosecutor at a press conference. at 11 in the morning.

“I would like to highlight, after the information that appeared in certain media, that at the present time, there is nothing in the investigation that suggests that these events occurred after a chase with the police. There was no persecution and the police were not informed of the events until later”, continued the prosecutor, refuting the rumor echoed by various local media. “In the current state of the investigation, the terrorist track is not a priority,” he said, referring to previously seen terrorist attacks in Europe in which criminals have charged a vehicle into a crowd.

The city of La Louvière is located in the southwest of Belgium, towards the border with France, between Charleroi and Mons, two larger cities in the area. In this region, carnivals are a deeply rooted festival and, in fact, in the nearby town of Binche, this festival is classified as Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. Participants in the celebration usually dress up as a character named Gilles.

Follow all the international information in Facebook and Twitteror in our weekly newsletter.