The GuardianA monster truck fitted with tractor-sized wheels has crashed into a crowd during a show in the Netherlands near the German border, killing two people and injuring 18 more, six seriously.
Video footage of the incident on Sunday showed the truck veering off course after driving over the top of a row of cars, then knocking down a guardrail and driving into a group of onlookers.
Earlier, local media had quoted Hans Gerritsen, the mayor of Haaksbergen, as saying that three people had died, but the figure was later revised. Local police could not immediately be reached to confirm the number of dead. Ambulances and emergency services were quickly on the scene, including a trauma helicopter from Germany.
One of the show’s organisers, Geerlof Kanis, told a local broadcaster, RTV Oost, that the city had granted a permit for the event, which is held annually in the town centre. He said safety fences kept onlookers at a sufficient distance from the show. He speculated that either the truck’s accelerator pedal had got stuck or its brakes had failed.
In footage of the incident posted to social media, the truck revs its engine after rolling over the row of cars, and then begins to turn. As it becomes clear the truck is on a crash course with the guard rail, around 30 people in the truck’s path fall back or jump away. The truck then lurches to a stop, with many onlookers screaming and panicking.
Kanis said the truck’s driver was being questioned by police.