At least two people died at the height of July 4 celebrations after a driver suspected of operating his truck under the influence of alcohol plowed into a park on the Lower East Side and struck nine people, police and city officials said.
The gray pickup truck blew through a stop sign near Water Street and Jackson Street before jumping the sidewalk and flying into Corlears Hook Park around 9 p.m., NYPD brass said at a late-night press conference.
The park had been filled with families enjoying the holiday when the truck moved in and a high-rate of speed and struck nine people. First responders quickly made it to the scene around found four people trapped underneath the truck.
Crews worked to lift the truck and extricate the injured revelers as quickly as possible. Multiple victims were transported to hospitals in the area, but at least two people died from their injuries, senior law enforcement officials told NBC New York.
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The driver appeared to have alcohol on his breath, according to NYPD Chief of Department Jeff Maddrey. Investigators believe that alcohol played a role in the tragic incident and said investigators did not believe it was terror-related.
Maddrey said witnesses rushed to the truck and pulled the driver out, holding him until police arrived to place him into custody.
The ages of the victims hurt and killed in the crash are not yet known, but Maddrey said two of them are young kids.
U.S. & World
At the NYPD press conference, officials reported a total of nine patients and two deaths. Senior law enforcement officials said moments later that a third death was reported and a tenth patient had walked into a hospital with facial injuries.
