At least 23 people were in serious condition and at least 23 people were injured after a car drove into the crowd on Santa Monica Boulevard in East Hollywood, Los Angeles early Saturday morning.
Sergeant. Travis Ward, supervisor commander for the Los Angeles Police Department’s Central Transportation Division, said the driver was shot and killed after the collision and was taken to hospital for surgery. Because of this, he said LAPD could not determine whether the driver was drunk.
Photos from the scene show grey grey vehicles hanging studded across the floor, spanning the sidewalk. At least dozens of firefighters can be seen along with many people sitting on the floor on blankets.
In another photo, the firefighter appears to be helping someone lift off the ground in his car.
The man inside the nightclub told NBC News that he heard a “big loud noise” and that many people attacked him, believing he was hearing gunshots.
“We look outside the club and it’s a car in a hole right there,” he said. “And that’s crazy because everywhere you go, you’re lying down, unconscious people, bleeding, etc.”
Sergeant. Ward added that it was premature to say whether the incident was intentional or whether the driver had escaped the road, adding that an investigation is ongoing.
Adam Vangelpen, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Fire Department, told NBC News that the vehicle hit a taco skirt before it encountered many people outside the nightclub. He said the LAFD was dispatched at 2am.
Seven people are in serious condition and six people in serious condition, LAFD said in a separate statement, with 10 people being treated for their injuries. Seven other individuals declined help on the scene. 124 firefighters said they had assisted on the scene.
Sergeant. Ward said there were no certain deaths.
Bill Feather contributed.
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