A holiday parade in Waukesha, Wis., turned into panic after a red SUV tore through the crowd. Police and first responders were called in upon reports of multiple injuries at the scene.
The 58th annual holiday parade in downtown Waukesha was underway when a vehicle sped past the parade, eventually colliding with an unspecified number of marchers.
Videos on social media showed a red SUV swerving through a low-rise obstacle and sped away. A law enforcement officer can be seen in the video and appears to have opened fire on the vehicle.
Waukesha resident Lindsey Ashley, 36, said she was enjoying the parade with her two children, aged 7 and 9, when the SUV was blown away by them.
She told NPR: “The SUV was glowing right where we were sitting and we heard the crash and people screaming. “I grabbed the kids and took off. Everyone was helping ‘escort’ the others to safety.”
She said her two children were abused and never wanted to attend another parade.
Tailyr Medrano, who also lives in Waukesha, said she held her 1-year-old son in her arms when she said she witnessed the car rush through the procession “right in front of us.” She took her toddler to the parade so he could see Santa for the first time, she told NPR via Facebook messenger.
“[I]Instead, he saw a red suv running past people believed to be entertaining us and children on the ground bleeding,” she wrote.
She was “shaking,” but safe, she said.
This is a breaking news story. Some things that are reported in the media later turn out to be false. We will focus on reports from officials and other authorities, trusted news agencies and reporters present at the scene. We will update as the situation develops.
