LIVERPOOL, England (Reuters) -A car ploughed into large crowds of Liverpool fans in the city centre during their side’s Premier League title celebrations on Monday, videos online showed, with police saying a man had been detained.
British police said they were responding to reports of a car hitting a “number of pedestrians” shortly after the team’s open-top coach carrying players and coaching staff drove through the city centre, where they were greeted by tens of thousands of fans.
An unverified video on social media purporting to show the incident showed a car driving at speed into large crowds of fans lining the street, at one point appearing to swerve away from the most densely crowded area.
Large numbers of police surrounded the vehicle shortly afterwards, with other videos showing that angry fans also tried to reach the driver. Some people were pictured lying in the road.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on X that the scenes were appalling and that he was being kept updated about the events.
“The scenes in Liverpool are appalling — my thoughts are with all those injured or affected. I want to thank the police and emergency services for their swift and ongoing response to this shocking incident,” Starmer said on social media.
Police said in a statement that the car had stopped at the scene and a male had been detained.
“Emergency services are currently on the scene,” they said.
A Reuters photographer said multiple ambulances were in the street, with a tent erected by nearby fire engines.
(Reporting by Phil Noble and Kate Holton; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Christian Radnedge)
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