2022 Strépy-Bracquegnies car crash

In the morning of 20 March 2022, a motorist drove a car through a crowd celebrating Carnival in Strépy-Bracquegnies, La Louvière, Belgium. Six people were killed and around 40 were wounded, with ten of the wounded people having very serious or even potentially fatal injuries.[1]

2022 Strépy-Bracquegnies car crash
LocationStrépy-Bracquegnies, Belgium
Coordinates50.465°N 4.115°E / 50.465; 4.115
Date20 March 2022
WeaponsCar
Deaths6
Injured40
MotiveUnknown
ChargesManslaughter

A crowd of 150–200 people were parading towards the centre of the village,[2] dressed up in costumes in celebration of the Christian festival of Carnival when the car collided with the crowd in the rue des Canadiens.[3] A TV presenter said that the vehicle "deliberately entered" the crowd, killing several people.[4] After crashing into the crowd, the car, which was carrying two people, sped off from the scene; later being stopped by police.[5]

Six people in total were killed, including Frédéric d'Andrea, a steward for the RAAL La Louvière football club.[6][7]

Police denied early reports that the vehicle had been engaging in a "high-speed chase" by police at the time. While a terrorist motive was ruled out, whether or not it was intentional was at first unclear.[8]

Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said he was shocked by the incident and responded to it as "horrible news",[1] and travelled to the village with Philippe of Belgium that day. French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed his sorrow and expressed empathy to Belgium.[6]

The driver was charged with manslaughter a few days later. He confessed he had exceeded the speed limit when the crash occurred, and insisted that what had happened was an accident.[9] Investigation indicated that the driver had been going 160 km/h while under the influence and using his mobile phone.[10]

Fatal victims
  • Mario Cascarano, (56 years old)
  • Michelina Imperiale (54 years old)
  • Salvatore Imperiale (56 years old)
  • Fred Cicero
  • Laure Gara (49 years old)
  • Frederic D'andrea (40 years old)
Source:[11]

References
  1. "Six killed after car drives into crowd in Belgium". BBC News. 20 March 2022. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  2. "Six killed as car driven into carnival crowd in southern Belgium". Euronews. 20 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  3. "Frederic, «admirable steward» à la RAAL La Louvière, a perdu la vie au carnaval de Strépy-Bracquegnies: «Et puis soudain il y a eu ce fou»" [Frederic, "admirable steward" at RAAL La Louvière, lost his life at the carnival of Strépy-Bracquegnies: "And then suddenly there was this madman"]. Sudinfo.be (in French). 20 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  4. "Fatalities as car smashes into carnival in southern Belgium". Aljazeera. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  5. "Six people killed as car crashes into carnival in Belgium". The Guardian. Reuters. 20 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  6. "Belgium mourns after car kills six in carnival crash". France 24. 20 March 2022. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  7. Cordisco, Mario (21 March 2022). "En hommage aux victimes de Strépy". RAAL La Louvière (in French). Retrieved 22 March 2022.
  8. Welle (www.dw.com), Deutsche. "Belgium: Six dead as car hits carnival crowd | DW | 20.03.2022". DW.COM. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  9. "Manslaughter charge for Belgian carnival crash driver". RTÉ. 22 March 2022.
  10. Sandra Cardoen (22 October 2022). "Man die in maart verkeersdrama met carnavalsgroep in Strépy veroorzaakte, blijft langer in de cel". VRT News.
  11. Burke, Dave (21 March 2022). "Faces of the 6 people killed in Belgium after car ploughed into carnival crowds". Mirror. Retrieved 2 April 2022.
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