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Waukesha Christmas Parade: SUV Plows Into Crowd, Killing Multiple People
Police in Wisconsin said they have recovered vehicle, have person of interest
A still image from a live video streamed by the city of Waukesha shows the red SUV driving down the street.PHOTO: UNCREDITED
By
Valerie Bauerlein
and
Ben Kesling
Updated Nov. 21, 2021 9:56 pm ET
A red SUV plowed through police barricades and into a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wis., Sunday afternoon, killing multiple people and sending more than 20 injured people to the hospital, police said.
Police have recovered the vehicle and a person of interest is in custody, city police Chief Dan Thompson said. The investigation is ongoing.
Eleven adults and 12 children were transported to six local hospitals, some by ambulance and some by family members, he said.
The parade started at 4 p.m. Central time in this Milwaukee suburb, and the incident took place about 4:40 p.m., Chief Thompson said.
Police fired to try to stop the vehicle, which was why bystanders heard gunshots, the police chief said. The FBI’s Milwaukee field office is aware of the incident but local and state authorities are leading the response at this time, an FBI spokesperson said.
Police and emergency personnel after the crash at a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wis.PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES
Waukesha County Executive Paul Farrow said he had just finished participating in the parade when the SUV “drove through the parade route, injuring many people.”
“This is an unspeakable tragedy, affecting us all as we work to overcome an extremely challenging two years and resume our cherished holiday traditions,” Mr. Farrow wrote on Twitter.
Waukesha is a suburb of 70,000 people west of Milwaukee. The Christmas parade is in its 58th year, with participants ranging from stilt walkers and firefighters to politicians and the Dancing Grannies, a group of grandmothers who perform choreographed routines, according to the city Chamber of Commerce.
The incident shut down the community, with streets blocked and nearby Carroll University on lockdown.
Video circulated on social media almost immediately of the moments leading up to and including the crash, showing dancers and members of marching bands being struck by the SUV, with spectators screaming individual names and rushing in to help the injured. There were pompoms, folding chairs and instruments strewn over the street, according to video footage.
The Waukesha School District canceled classes on Monday, according to a statement from the district’s superintendent and deputy Sunday evening, adding that the district will have counselors available during the school day for those who need support services.
“At this time, we are working with the police department to more fully comprehend all of the tragic details of this unfortunate event,” the statement said.
Mary Jane Anttila said she was marching in the parade as a member of the Wisconsin Diamond Dancers when the SUV sped past her group. The Diamond Dancers, a group of women who are over 50 years old, were just starting to dance to the third song in their routine.
“That car went by so fast I couldn’t see the person in there at all,” Ms. Anttila said.
“We stopped our performance,” she said, as people in her group all wondered what was happening, especially because they hadn’t noticed the vehicle approaching at all until it whizzed by them from behind.
“He kept going, and all these people were screaming and crying, and we realized he had hit people,” she said. Soon a melee of people, police cars and ambulances flooded the parade.
Excerpt
—Joe Barrett contributed to this article. |
