Chaos in the midst of the Christmas parade. A car drove into the crowd on Sunday, November 21 in the middle of the afternoon (10:30 p.m. in France), killing many during the 59th annual parade in the town of Waukesha, a suburb of Milwaukee, the largest city in the state of Wisconsin, in the Great Lakes region.
Dozens of people who took part in the festivities were hit by the vehicle, which then fled. The balance sheet for the moment shows at least five dead and 40 injured, including children, corn “it may change as we continue to collect information”, said the city police department. An investigation is opened and a suspect has been taken into custody. Franceinfo looks back on what we know about this tragedy.
A car bursts behind the parade
According to witness videos and images captured by city cameras, a dark red vehicle burst into the parade, behind a high school marching band marching down Main Street, the city’s main street, hitting anyone in its path after knocking down security gates.
Angelito Tenorio, candidate for the post of state treasurer and present at the scene of the tragedy, told the daily Milwaukee Journal Sentinel to have seen an SUV driving at full speed on the road taken by the parade. “Then I heard a big shock and deafening screams from people hit by the vehicle”, he said. Another witness, Angela O’Boyle, whose apartment overlooks the main street where the parade was taking place, told the American channel CNN that she heard “screams and then people scream the names of their children.”
“There were pom poms, shoes and spilled hot chocolate everywhere”, also testified Cory Montilho with the local daily newspaper. This Waukesha school board member was near a restaurant when he heard his daughter’s dance group had been hit by the vehicle. “I had to go from one curled body to another to find my daughter”, he said, adding that his wife and two daughters had almost been affected.
A still very provisional assessment
Local Police Chief Dan Thompson clarified at a press conference that “the car hit more than 20 people, some of them were children and there were injuries”. The provisional assessment for the moment shows “five people dead and more than 40 injured” according to the count given by the city.
“However, these numbers may change as more information is collected., specified the municipality. Many people have self-transported to hospitals in the area. “
At this time, we can confirm that 5 people are deceased and over 40 are injured. However, these numbers may change as we collect additional information. Many people have self-transported to area hospitals. The Police Department has the person of interest in custody.
– cityofwaukesha (@CityofWaukesha) November 22, 2021
The local fire chief announced that 11 adults and 12 children had been taken to hospital. The pediatric health facility Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin said on Twitter Sunday evening that it had hosted “15 patients” (in English) and that’“no deaths were yet to report” . As for the Aurora Medical Center hospital in Summit (a county of Waukesha), he said he had taken care of “13 patients: 3 are in critical condition, 4 in serious condition and 6 in fair condition”, according to Fox6 Milwaukee (in English).
Among the victims is also one of the priests of the Diocese of Milwaukee as well as “many parishioners and children of the Catholic school in Waukesha “, Milwaukee Catholic Church spokesperson Sandra Peterson said.
An open investigation and closed schools
At the material time, the Waukesha police said he fired at the vehicle in an attempt to stop it in its murderous race. The local police announced that a suspect had been taken into custody without knowing for the moment the circumstances of his arrest. “An investigation is underway”Dan Thompson said at his press conference.
According to the American channel CNN, which quotes police sources, the investigators have so far not established any terrorist links, while, according to a note from the Department of Homeland Security obtained by the channel ABC, “the driver was possibly fleeing from a previous crime scene” when he rushed into the procession on Sunday around 4:30 p.m. local time.
Monday, Schools in the city kept their doors closed after sending a letter to families stating that if students needed support, they could come to their respective schools. Carroll University has also canceled weekly classes in the wake of the tragedy.
A strong emotion among American politicians
The White House “Keeps herself informed of the situation in Waukesha and our hearts are broken in the face of all those who have been struck by this terrible event”, said an official in the US presidency. “We have contacted local and state officials to offer our assistance if needed.”, he added.
Several Wisconsin parliamentarians also expressed their condolences, including Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin, for whom this “horrible violence breaks our hearts”. On Sunday evening, the governor of Wisconsin said for his part that he and his wife “prayed for Waukesha that night and for the children, families and members of this community struck by this meaningless act.”