Near Rotterdam: truck crashes into barbecue – six dead, many injured

Netherlands
Truck rolls over BBQ – six dead, great chaos and a scene of devastation

Rescue workers at the scene of the accident: ten ambulances and a helicopter are in action. photo

© ANP/dpa

The barbecue in a small town in Holland is in full swing. Then the catastrophe: a truck shoots from a dyke into the middle of the people celebrating below. There are dead and injured.

When a heavy truck crashed into a well-attended neighborhood festival near Rotterdam, six people died. Seven others were injured, one of them critically, police said.

On Saturday evening in the small town of Nieuw-Beijerland, a Spanish truck veered off the road that runs along a dyke at an intersection and suddenly drove right into the middle of the barbecue below, where dozens of people were celebrating together. The heavy truck rolled everything down within seconds. Eyewitnesses spoke of great chaos and a picture of devastation.

Ten ambulances and one helicopter deployed

The 46-year-old Spanish truck driver was arrested. A police spokeswoman for the dpa said he was being investigated for causing a fatal accident. His role in the accident is being investigated. The man, who was not injured, had not drunk any alcohol. The truck initially stopped at the intersection and, when it started again, got off the narrow road for reasons that are still unknown. The truck was confiscated.

Around 100 people had registered for the festival organized by an association, a resident told broadcaster Omroep Rijnmond. A neighbor spoke of complete chaos. Everyone was in a panic. Everyone wanted to help. “But there were an awful lot of injuries.” Camping tables and benches were thrown aside and the grill tipped over. The helpers came in large numbers. Ten ambulances and a helicopter were deployed.



This truck comes dangerously close to a rescue helicopter.

“You can imagine what a blow that is: During a neighborhood festival, a truck drives into this group of people, the shock is enormous,” said a police spokeswoman at the scene of the accident. The community is taking care of the numerous witnesses to the terrible events. The people were caught in a nearby farm.

“It’s a very close-knit village community here in Nieuw-Bejerland,” Mayor Charlie Aptroot told NOS. The accident was a terrible blow for the residents. “People want to know how their relatives or good friends are doing, but there is still no complete overview,” he said late in the evening.

During the night, a specialist company used a crane to hoist the heavy truck back onto the road. Then experts started to salvage and identify the dead lying under the vehicle.

What role does a delivery truck play near Rotterdam?

According to the Spanish newspaper “La Verdad”, the Spanish trucking company said the driver of the truck went off the road while trying to avoid a van. He went down an embankment with his vehicle and fell on the people who were just having a barbecue. The haulage company is in contact with the Dutch authorities to help clarify the cause of the accident, the newspaper reported.

The police spokeswoman could not say whether a van was involved in the accident. On the evening of the accident, however, a white van was being searched for, which is said to have been at the intersection. The driver later reported himself to authorities. Investigations are underway into the cause of the accident. As the police emphasized on Sunday, all scenarios regarding the course of the accident are still open.

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DPA

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