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Three days of mourning for Haiti carnival float victims | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Three days of mourning have been declared in Haiti after a power line fell on to a carnival float in the capital, Port au Prince. | |
At least 16 people died in the accident, prompting officials to cancel the final day of the carnival. | |
Witnesses said someone on the float used a stick to move the power line to let the float pass, the Associated Press news agency reported. | Witnesses said someone on the float used a stick to move the power line to let the float pass, the Associated Press news agency reported. |
Some of the victims were electrocuted while others died in the ensuing panic. | Some of the victims were electrocuted while others died in the ensuing panic. |
Officials said a further 78 people had been injured. | |
Haitian Prime Minister Evans Paul said a silent parade would be held later on Tuesday to honour the dead. | |
Those in attendance will wear white and march along the Champ de Mars where the accident occurred. | |
The three days of mourning will officially begin on Wednesday, with flags to be flown at half-mast. | |
A state funeral will be held for the victims on Saturday. | |
The float, one of 16 in the parade, was sponsored by the Haitian hip-hop group Barikad Crew. | The float, one of 16 in the parade, was sponsored by the Haitian hip-hop group Barikad Crew. |
The power line struck the group's singer Fantom, who remains in hospital in a critical condition. | |
Hundreds of people were reported to have gathered outside the hospital, waiting for news of their loved ones. | |
Haitian President Michel Martelly gave his condolences to the victims on Twitter. | |
"My sincere sympathy to the victims of the serious incident at Champ de Mars on the second day of carnival," the president tweeted in French. | "My sincere sympathy to the victims of the serious incident at Champ de Mars on the second day of carnival," the president tweeted in French. |
Witnesses said some people managed to jump off the float, causing panic amid the crowd surrounding it. | Witnesses said some people managed to jump off the float, causing panic amid the crowd surrounding it. |
"I saw the wire falling and sparks and I started running for my life," Natacha Saint Fleur told the Associated Press. | "I saw the wire falling and sparks and I started running for my life," Natacha Saint Fleur told the Associated Press. |
Thousands of people had been attending the carnival in the capital when the accident happened. | Thousands of people had been attending the carnival in the capital when the accident happened. |