35 dead as driver hits crowd in Chinese city

BANGKOK: Police in China say 35 people were killed and another 43 injured when a driver rammed his car into people exercising at a sports centre in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai.

The 62-year-old driver was detained, police said earlier Monday. It was not immediately clear whether it was an attack or an accident. No motive was mentioned, and police said investigations continued.

The incident, which occurred on Monday night, is facing heavy censorship as the Zhuhai Airshow opened Tuesday.

Police identified the man only by his family name of Fan, consistent with the practice by Chinese authorities. The police statement said the vehicle knocked down “a number of” of pedestrians Monday evening.

Videos showed a firefighter performing CPR on a person, as people were told to leave the scene. They were shared by news blogger and dissident Li Ying, who is better known on X as Teacher Li. His account posts daily news based on user submissions. Dozens of people were lying prone on the running track in the sports centre in the videos. In one, a woman says “my foot is broken.”

By Tuesday morning, searches for the incident on Chinese social media were heavily censored on Chinese social media platforms. A search on Weibo for the sports centre only turned up a few posts, with only a couple referring to the fact something had happened, without pictures or details. Articles by Chinese media about the incident from Monday night were taken down.