updated27. August 2022, 21:50
Netherlands“It was terrible” – truck drives into barbecue party and kills several people
A terrible accident has happened in the Netherlands. A truck drove down a dike directly into a marquee. Several people are said to have died.
A truck drove off a dike in Nieuw-Beijerland (South Holland) early on Saturday evening, killing several people and injuring many others, police said. Several victims were taken to a hospital for treatment. A neighborhood festival was taking place there at the time of the accident, said an ANP photographer who was present at the scene of the accident. It is said to have been an annual festival.
Johan van Driel witnessed the accident and is deeply affected. “We were just having a BBQ and saw a truck pull up at the intersection and then drive right through the tent. It was terrible. Several people were dragged along. At such a moment, everything goes through you: powerlessness, disbelief,” says van Driel.
A woman who was at the scene tells of two bleeding children in her arms, according to the Dutch newspaper «AD» reports: «We also saw a woman lying in the garden. It’s a terrible tragedy.” According to a witness who arrived ten minutes later, chaos reigned. “I saw people crying and police officers running,” said the man.
The exact number of victims is still unclear. The broadcaster NOS reported at least three dead and several injured. In order to be able to precisely determine the number of victims, the articulated lorry, which came from a Spanish trucking company, should first be recovered. Ten ambulances and a helicopter were deployed. The truck driver was not injured and was taken to the police station for questioning.
‘You can imagine what a blow that is. During a neighborhood festival, a truck drives into this group of people, the shock is enormous,” a police spokeswoman at the scene of the accident told Omroep Rijnmond. The community is taking care of the numerous witnesses to the terrible events. A special company was commissioned to salvage the truck, only then could experts salvage the dead.
The accident happened near an intersection, as seen in photos and TV footage. The streets run along a dyke, at the foot of which the festival was in progress.