Woman in custody is expected to be charged imminently
Car twice mounted sidewalk outside hotel and casino
Six of those injured are in critical condition
Three-year-old child travelling in car unharmed
One person has died and 36 are injured, six critically, after a car ran into a group of pedestrians on the Las Vegas strip in an incident police have described as intentional.
Officials said the driver mounted the sidewalk at two or three separate locations, first mowing down pedestrians outside the Planet Hollywood resort and casino, before returning to the road and then driving back on to a footpath in front of the Paris hotel.
The driver, a woman in her 20s who has not been identified, was in custody after reportedly attempting to leave the scene of the crash on Sunday evening.
A three-year-old child who was in the car with her was unharmed, authorities said.
“We know this was not an act of terrorism,” Las Vegas police captain Brett Zimmerman told reporters at a news conference late Sunday night.
“We have determined that this is an intentional act.”
Officials said the woman was driving a 1996 Oldsmobile four-door vehicle with Oregon licence plates. She is expected to be charged within the next few hours.
Roads were closed as emergency vehicles attended the scene on South Las Vegas Boulevard.
Police lieutenant Peter Boffelli said the vehicle was in the northbound lanes of Las Vegas Boulevard near Bellagio Way when it drove up on to the sidewalk, striking dozens of pedestrians.
Of the 37 people who were taken to the hospital, one has died, six were in critical condition, four were treated and released, and 26 are still receiving hospital care.
“This is a huge tragedy that has happened on our strip,” Boffelli said.
Clark county fire chief Greg Cassell said the call for help came in at 6.38pm and 70 emergency crew workers were sent to the scene.
Surveillance cameras on the strip would be key to the investigation, officials said.
https://twitter.com/LVMPD/status/678827406514229248/photo/1The driver left the scene, but she has since been taken into custody and is being interviewed and tested for alcohol and controlled substances.
The crash occurred on a busy stretch of the Las Vegas strip across from the dancing water fountains of the Bellagio hotel and casino, where visitors crowd sidewalks as they walk from one casino to another. The Miss Universe pageant was being held at the Planet Hollywood at the time of the crash.
The Las Vegas metropolitan police department said on Twitter that it was “investigating a multiple injury auto-pedestrian crash”.
https://twitter.com/LVMPD/status/678778754240385025University Medical Center in Las Vegas said it was treating 11 patients. An 11-year-old boy was reported to be in a serious condition.
Danita Cohen, spokeswoman for UMC, said the victims’ injuries include head injuries, cuts and broken bones. Some of the victims are from Montreal, Canada, and were in need of French translators, she said.
Other patients were taken to Spring Valley and Sunrise hospitals.
The crash occurred in front of the Paris hotel and casino and Planet Hollywood on South Las Vegas Boulevard, north of Harmon Avenue. Police warned Las Vegas residents to expect delays on the strip for several more hours.
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/dec/21/multiple-casualties-car-pedestrians-las-vegas-strip
