London
Driver drives car into elementary school – eight-year-old dies
Police inspect the car that killed a child in a London schoolyard
© Victoria Jones/PA Wire / DPA
In London, a woman drove her car onto a school campus for reasons that are still unclear. One girl was killed and more than a dozen people were injured.
An eight-year-old girl has died after a car crashed into a London primary school building. A spokeswoman for the London police said in tears on Thursday at a press conference after the accident in the Wimbledon district. The driver of the car was arrested on suspicion of homicide through dangerous driving, the spokeswoman said. It is therefore a woman between the ages of 40 and 50 years.
It was initially unclear why the car had left the road and entered the school grounds. The spokeswoman emphasized, however, that one does not assume a terrorist background.
A spokesman for the emergency services said a total of 16 people were treated on site, 10 of whom were taken to the hospital. Police had previously spoken of seven children and two adults injured in the incident. A total of 15 ambulances were used, said the spokesman for the London Ambulance Service. No details were initially known about the condition of the other victims.
Car on school grounds in London
A damaged Land Rover was seen on television next to the school building, apparently breaching a fence and moving quite a distance on school grounds. There were also seating areas near the wrecked car in the outdoor area. According to a BBC report, it is a school for girls aged 4 to 11.
Insights into the tiny house in London
A large number of emergency services vehicles could be seen around the school in the south-west of the British capital. Police said a rescue helicopter was also on the scene. The first emergency call is said to have been received shortly before 10 a.m. local time (11 a.m. CEST).
Interior Minister mourns the loss of girls
Home Secretary Suella Braverman expressed dismay at the incident. “My thoughts are with everyone affected,” wrote the conservative politician on Twitter. She thanked the authorities for their efforts. It is important that they can now determine.