Monster Truck Crash Kills 7, Injures Dozens in Mexico
 

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Updated 4:07 AM EDT, Sun October 6, 2013


CHIHUAHUA, Mexico (AP) — An out-of-control monster truck shot into a crowd of spectators at a Mexican air show, killing at least eight people and hurting 80 others, dozens seriously, officials said.

Carlos Gonzalez, spokesman for the Chihuahua state prosecutors’ office, said the driver appeared to have lost control of the truck after leaping over a pile of cars it was crushing during a demonstration at the ‘‘Extreme Aeroshow’’ on Saturday.

Some witnesses said the driver appeared to have hit his head on the interior of the truck as he drove over the old cars, with at least two reporting seeing his helmet come off before the massive vehicle drove into the crowd of terrified spectators, who tried to flee.

‘‘I fell over, and when I turned around I saw the tire very close. It hit me and threw me to the other side,’’ Jesus Manuel Ibarra, 41, said as he was treated for injuries to his arm and hip.

Gonzalez said the accident killed at least one child and hurt 80 people, 46 of whom remained hospitalized early Sunday. He said the number of dead and injured could rise as officials received updated information Sunday morning. The local health system listed the names of 67 injured people on its Facebook page, calling urgently for blood donations and help from local doctors and nurses.

Gonzalez said prosecutors were looking into the possibility of a mechanical failure that left the driver unable to release the gas pedal. Several witnesses said, however, that the driver appeared to have become incapacitated when he struck his head during the show, in which the truck drives at high speed over smaller cars, leaping into the air as it crushes their roofs.

Spectator Daniel Dominguez, 18, said he was happily watching the show with a group of relatives when the truck came down hard in the middle of the cars.

‘‘The driver hit his head and his helmet flew off,’’ Dominguez said.

‘‘The truck came directly at where we were.’’

His 11-year-old sister was in surgery for injuries to her legs, and his mother was treated for minor contusions.

The air show was canceled after the accident that happened during the second day of the three-day show in a park on the outskirts of Chihuahua, the capital of Chihuahua state.

Re: Monster Truck Crash Kills 7, Injures Dozens in Mexico
 

UPDATE: Alcohol detected on breath of monster truck driver who plowed into crowd.


CHIHUAHUA, Mexico (AP)

The out-of-control monster truck driver who shot into a crowd of spectators at a Mexican air show, killing eight people and hurting 79, was detected that he had alcohol on hid breath.

The driver was detained Sunday on suspicion of manslaughter and officials said they were investigating possible safety violations in the setup of the show.

Carlos Gonzalez, spokesman for the Chihuahua state prosecutors' office, said driver Francisco Velazquez appeared to lose control of the truck after leaping over cars it was crushing during a demonstration at the "Extreme Aeroshow" on Saturday.

Video taken from the stands by spectator Krizthall Martinez and provided to The Associated Press shows the truck making an initial pass over two cars. It then makes a second pass at higher speed, coming down sharply nose first and bouncing violently before piling straight into the crowd, which stood directly in the path of the monster truck unprotected by any wall or barrier.

The three-day show, which included performances by airplanes, the monster truck acts and other events, was canceled after the accident on its second day in a park on the outskirts of Chihuahua, the capital of Chihuahua state.

On Sunday, two armed men threw a firebomb at monster trucks and other vehicles parked at a hotel that were part of an unrelated monster truck production at the air show.

Chihuahua Gov. Cesar Duarte Juarez said his administration, which was listed as a sponsor of the air show, was investigating whether Civil Protection authorities had correctly enforced safety regulations. He and other officials didn't say if those regulations required any protective barrier for spectators.

Some witnesses said the driver appeared to have hit his head on the interior of the truck, which is nicknamed "Big Show," as he drove over the old cars. At least two reporting seeing the driver's helmet come off before the huge vehicle drove into the crowd of terrified spectators, who tried to flee.