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Van Crash Outside Shanghai Starbucks Injures at Least 18 Shanghai Van Crash Caused by Smoking Driver, Police Say
(about 2 hours later)
HONG KONG — A van slammed into pedestrians on a sidewalk outside a Starbucks in Shanghai on Friday, injuring at least 18 people, the Chinese state news media reported. HONG KONG — A smoking driver ignited a fire inside a van carrying fuel canisters, causing him to lose control and slam into pedestrians on a sidewalk outside a Starbucks in Shanghai on Friday, the police said. At least 18 people were injured.
The crash occurred just before 9 a.m. on Nanjing Road West, near People’s Park in the heart of the city, according to Central China Television, the state broadcaster. Eighteen people were taken to the hospital, including three who were seriously injured, it said. The crash occurred just before 9 a.m. on Nanjing Road West, near People’s Park in the heart of the city, the authorities said.
The Shanghai police said the driver, a 40-year-old man surnamed Chen, worked for a metalware company in Shanghai and had no criminal history. He “lost control and drove onto the sidewalk,” injuring 17 pedestrians and himself. None of the injured pedestrians is in mortal danger, the police said. The Shanghai police said the driver, a 40-year-old man surnamed Chen, worked for a metalware company in Shanghai and had no criminal history. He “lost control and drove onto the sidewalk,” injuring 17 pedestrians and himself. All 18 were taken to hospitals, and none of the injured pedestrians were in mortal danger, the police said.
A witness told a reporter from The Paper, a local news outlet, that the van had been carrying fuel canisters. The police said that the driver had been smoking in the vehicle, setting off a fire inside, and that he was suspected of “illegally transporting dangerous substances.” Witnesses said the van had been carrying fuel canisters. The police said that the driver had been smoking in the vehicle, setting off a fire inside, and that he was suspected of “illegally transporting dangerous substances.”
The fire was extinguished quickly, The Paper reported, and it did not appear that any of the canisters exploded. Zhang Sai, a 21-year-old security guard at a building across the street from the Starbucks, said he noticed the smoke-filled vehicle as it headed toward the sidewalk without any sign of slowing down.
Witnesses said the van drove directly onto a sidewalk and hit five or six pedestrians who were waiting to cross, reported Xinmin Evening News, a Shanghai newspaper. “The driver couldn’t see the road ahead,” he said.
Video posted online showed firefighters extinguishing flames from a gray van as injured people lay on the sidewalk. Kevin Ye, an employee at a Porsche showroom across the street from the Starbucks, said he saw the van hit a tree in front of the shop. “I immediately heard a woman screaming and saw people inside of the Starbucks trying to rush out,” he said.
The fire was extinguished quickly, and it did not appear that any of the canisters exploded.
Firefighters retrieved three or four fuel canisters from the burned van, Mr. Ye said.
Video posted online showed firefighters dousing flames from a gray van as injured people lay on the sidewalk.
Some local news reports disappeared from their websites shortly after they were published, an indication that government censors may have ordered them removed.Some local news reports disappeared from their websites shortly after they were published, an indication that government censors may have ordered them removed.
Before the police indicated that the crash was an accident, images of the flaming van and injured pedestrians stirred concerns of a deliberate attack. China has a history of aggrieved citizens using vehicles or explosions to vent their anger at the authorities.Before the police indicated that the crash was an accident, images of the flaming van and injured pedestrians stirred concerns of a deliberate attack. China has a history of aggrieved citizens using vehicles or explosions to vent their anger at the authorities.
In 2013, five people died and dozens more were injured in downtown Beijing after a speeding vehicle bowled along a crowded sidewalk and burst into flames near the Forbidden City. In 2009, three people set themselves and their car on fire at Wangfujing, a shopping street just east of Tiananmen Square, in what was described as a protest over land seizures.In 2013, five people died and dozens more were injured in downtown Beijing after a speeding vehicle bowled along a crowded sidewalk and burst into flames near the Forbidden City. In 2009, three people set themselves and their car on fire at Wangfujing, a shopping street just east of Tiananmen Square, in what was described as a protest over land seizures.
Starbucks is a major presence in China, where it has opened more than 500 locations a year, creating some 10,000 jobs in the country annually. There are at least 600 shops in Shanghai alone.Starbucks is a major presence in China, where it has opened more than 500 locations a year, creating some 10,000 jobs in the country annually. There are at least 600 shops in Shanghai alone.