Introduction
Tragedy has struck London University, King’s College London. On Tuesday 18th March at approximately 11:40 GMT, according to the police, a van driver drove into The Strands in central London and crashed into pedestrians. This took place close to King’s College London and student accommodation Somerset House.
According to the police, the man was 26 years of age. Whilst his name and background have been disclosed, the police have released a statement that the man has been arrested. This is based on suspicion of careless driving and drug driving. Furthermore, the police have maintained that the incident was not terror-related.
But unfortunately, the tragedy does end there. As a result of the van driver’s action, a 20-year-old student, whose identity is also has died. Additionally, 3 of the pedestrians were injured, with one facing potentially life-threatening injuries. 2 out of 3 are currently in the hospital facing treatment for their injuries. The fourth was treated and discharged at the scene. All 4 victims identity continues to remain undisclosed.
Student Witness statement
Miles Damons, a student at King’s, told the BBC, “The van came from one of the side roads by the Indian Embassy and then, at this point – I didn’t see how or when – crashed into the people.”
“I just saw it coming from there; it made a sharp turn and just rammed into the fence.”
Additionally, Ali, a PhD student at King’s College London made a statement. He reported to the BBC that he had initially thought the emergency services were there for a protest outside the university. It wasn’t until he saw ambulance workers carrying stretchers that he knew something terrible had happened.
“It is sad and hard to process – my thoughts go out to her family and friends.” He also stated how students and other pedestrians “walk by that crossing all the time, and it’s pedestrianised; barely any vehicles pass.”
Student Gian Giacomo gave a statement to the BBC. He told them that he got to the university around 11:55 am and was met by the arrival of emergency services and 3 people receiving treatment by paramedics.
“There was a lot of confusion. No-one knew what happened. The news of the van hitting the people came later on.”
More Witness Statement
Furthermore, another witness called Josh, an employee of Cadogan Tate, gave a statement to the Sun. He was merely metres away from the incident working. He reported seeing a van that was so out of control, it was briefly airborne before it ploughed into multiple people.
“The iron gate collapsed as the van was coming out of the service yard. It was still going at speed, and it ended up clipping a planter before going through the air.”
“It hit the girl as she was sitting on the bench with one of her mates.”
He furthermore reported hearing screams and a loud bang at the time the incident took place.
“We all went over there, and then obviously one of my mates, he went in there, grabbed some first raiders and came out; we tried to get people away and all that.”
All credits go to the BBC and the Sun.
The aftermath
Photos were taken at the scene, depicting paramedics and an injured pedestrian. Multiple ambulances and police cars, in addition to the air ambulance, rushed to the scene in hope of treating as many pedestrians as possible. Additionally, the London Fire Brigade also made an appearance, with 2 fire engineers and 10 firefighters at the scene. Furthermore, the MET police released a statement in which they detailed how “police are on the scene dealing with the collision close to The Strand, WC2.”
A London Ambulance spokesperson reported on the incident saying, “we were called today (Tuesday 18th March) at 11:39 am to reports of an incident in The Strand, WC2.”
“We sent resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, advanced paramedics, an incident response officer, a clinical team manager and London’s air ambulance.”
“We treated four people at the scene. Sadly, despite our best efforts, one person died. We took two people to hospital, and a fourth person was discharged.”
As for the driver, the metropolitan police have announced that the 26-year-old driver has been arrested. “He remains in custody. Enquiries are ongoing, and a crime scene is in place. This collision is not being treated as terrorism-related.”
Conclusion
So whilst the identity of the driver remains unknown, we expect to hear news on what the outcome will be and the legal consequences he will face in the near future.
As for now, our thoughts and prayers go to the victims and their families. We wish the 2 victims in the hospital a speedy and safe recovery, and our condolences go to the 20-year-old female who sadly passed away.
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