Six people were killed and ten suffered life-threatening injuries after a car crashed into people celebrating a Carnival in a small town in southern Belgium early Sunday morning.
The prosecution said there was no reason to suspect terrorism in the preliminary investigation.
Some 150 people gathered at dawn in Strépy-Bracquegnies, about 50 kilometers (30 miles) south of Brussels, to kick off Carnival celebrations, which had been suspended for the previous two years due to COVID-19.
“A car drove from behind at high speed. And we have a few dozen injured and unfortunately several people who have died,” the mayor, Jacques Gbert, told RTBF.
The driver and a second person were taken into custody when their car stopped hundreds of meters away.
The prosecution denied reports in the media that the car that had caused the accident had arrived at the scene after a chase with the police.
“What should have been a big party turned into a tragedy,” Belgian Interior Minister Annelies Verlinden said.
King Philippe and Prime Minister Alexander De Croo were scheduled to travel to Strepy later on Sunday.
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