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(CNN) — A driver plowed into a parade float carrying a disabled veterans group, killing four people and injuring four others in Madison, Wisconsin, officials said.
The white Jeep driven by a University of Wisconsin-Madison student plowed into a group of veterans and their spouses who were visiting the city for the annual Veteran of Foreign Wars parade, the Madison Fire Department said.
The four people killed were parade participants, the county medical examiner’s office said. Two others were taken to a hospital.
The vehicle, which was loaded with 23 people, hurtled through a line of police officers and into the veterans group, the fire department said.
“A vehicle was involved in a collision with the parade, causing injuries and fatalities to parade participants and bystanders,” according to a statement from the United States Marine Corps Wisconsin Rapids-based 1st Battalion, 38th Marine Regiment.
“Approximately 20 first responders assisted with treatment of the victims. Each of these 20 provided emergency and medical care to their fellow citizens in the immediate aftermath of the incident.”
The all-volunteer Veterans of Foreign Wars has said the parade honors military veterans from around the country.
It was a relatively small event and had begun with a review of the troops under “a brightly lit, drizzly sky,” according to CNN affiliate WKOW.
Images from the scene showed police tape blocking the road and blood on the sidewalk, some of it soaked into the sidewalk.
A victim was covered with a white sheet as a police officer stood over him. Officers were taking people to ambulances on stretchers.
Madison Mayor Paul Soglin said in a statement the city “is mourning the loss of these four individuals.”
“This is a tragic day for our community. Words cannot express the sorrow I feel,” he said.
The mayor extended the city’s thoughts and prayers to the families and survivors of the victims.
“This kind of tragedy should not happen anywhere, much less in our city,” he said.
The-CNN-Wire
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