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Truck crashes at Florida Pride March, killing one

June 21, 2021

The truck crashed into pedestrians ahead of a Pride event close to Fort Lauderdale. Police have said it was a "tragic accident" and not on attack on the LGBTQ community.

https://p.dw.com/p/3vF4E
Police and firefighters cordon off the area
Police and firefighters responded after a truck drove into a crowd of people in Wilton ManorsImage: Chris Day/AP Photo/picture alliance

A pickup truck slammed into a crowd gathering for a Pride parade on Saturday in South Florida, killing one man and injuring another, authorities said.

Initially, officials suspected a deliberate assault on the local LGBT community. On Sunday, however, local police dismissed such claims.

"Today we know yesterday's incident was a tragic accident, and not a criminal act directed at anyone, or any group of individuals," police chief Gary Blocker said in a statement.

Separately, the AP news agency quoted Wilton Manors Vice Mayor Paul Rolli and Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis as saying that the early investigation shows it was an accident. 

Trantalis previously told the media he thought the crash was "deliberate" and that the truck was targeting the car of a Democratic congresswoman, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who was set to take part in the parade.

What happened at the Pride event?

The incident took place at the start of the Wilton Manors Stonewall Pride Parade and festival, an LGBTQ celebration in a town near Fort Lauderdale.

The white truck was set to take part in the parade and was lined up with other floats when it accelerated into pedestrians.

It then crashed into a plant nursery, Local 10 News said.

Police investigate the scene where a pickup truck drove into a crowd of people at a Pride parade on June 19, 2021 in Wilton Manors, Florida
The incident took place late in Wilton Manors, South FloridaImage: Jason Koerner/Getty Images

Two adult men were transported to a medical center where one later died, detective Ali Adamson told reporters.

The other remains hospitalized but is expected to survive, she added.

Police took the driver of the pickup truck into custody. The driver and the victims are members of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men's Chorus, according to a statement from the group's president Justin Knight.

Knight called the incident an "unfortunate accident."

"To my knowledge, this was not an attack on the LGBTQ community. We anticipate more details to follow and ask for the community's love and support," he added.

An orange police cone on the floor as well as some shoes and a bag of litter on the road
Police investigate the scene where a pickup truck drove into a crowd of people at a Pride paradeImage: Jason Koerner/Getty Images

'Hug your loved ones tight'

Knight said that "Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected by the unfortunate accident that occurred when the Stonewall Pride Parade was just getting started."

Wasserman Schultz, the congresswoman attending the march, said on Twitter that she was "heartbroken" by what had taken place.

"I am deeply shaken and devastated that a life was lost," she added.

Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony, who said he had also been at the scene of the incident, sent prayers to the victims' families, adding: "Be sure to hug the ones you love tonight."

June is Pride Month, which commemorates the 1969 Stonewall riots sparked by repeated police raids on a popular gay bar in New York. The demonstrations proved to be a turning point in the LGBTQ community's struggle for civil rights.

kmm/mm (AP, AFP)