Four children confirmed among 47 injured after car driven into crowd of people during Liverpool FC victory parade
Police have confirmed that four children were among the people injured when a car was driven into a crowd at a parade celebrating Liverpool FC's Premier League victory.
A 53-year-old white British man from the Liverpool area was arrested at the scene, with Merseyside Police saying they believe him to be the driver of the car.
Footage of the incident appeared to show the vehicle speeding up as it approached crowds of people, before being driven into pedestrians on a crowded Liverpool street.
At least 47 people have been injured in what police described as a 'horrific incident', among them four children.
Of the injured, Dave Kitchin from North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) said that 20 people were treated at the scene and 27 ended up in hospital.
He added that two of the people taken to hospital, one of them a child, had suffered serious injuries.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service Chief Fire Officer Nick Searle explained that four people had been rescued after being trapped beneath the car that was driven into the parade crowd.
Police had confirmed that a crash had taken place yesterday (26 May) at around 6pm on Water Street, and that when they arrived on the scene they found witnesses attempting to stop the driver.
Last night, a spokesperson for Merseyside Police said: "We would ask people not to speculate on the circumstances surrounding tonight's incident on Water Street in Liverpool city centre.
"We can confirm the man arrested is a 53-year-old white British man from the Liverpool area. Extensive enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances leading up to the collision."
The incident is not being treated as an act of terrorism, and Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims has asked people not to share the disturbing footage of it on social media.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer thanked the emergency services for their response, describing the matter as 'appalling' and calling for police to be given 'the space they need to investigate'.
He said: "The scenes in Liverpool are appalling — my thoughts are with all those injured or affected.
"I want to thank the police and emergency services for their swift and ongoing response to this shocking incident. I’m being kept updated on developments and ask that we give the police the space they need to investigate."
Liverpool FC released a statement saying they were in 'direct contact with Merseyside Police regarding the incident on Water Street' and promised to do all they could to support the response.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been affected by this serious incident," they said. "We will continue to offer our full support to the emergency services and local authorities who are dealing with this incident."
Joe Harker