NEW YORK, Nov 23 (NNN-AGENCIES) – An initially cheerful scene of marching bands and children dancing in Santa hats and waving pom-poms turned deadly in an instant, as an SUV passed through a barricade and headed for the parade.
One video showed a woman shouting, “Oh my God!” on several occasions, as a group of young dancers was mowed down. A father spoke of going “from one crumpled body to another” in search of his daughter. Members of a Dancing Grannies club were among those affected.
“What happened in Waukesha today (Sunday), is disgusting, and I have no doubts that those responsible will be brought to justice,” tweeted Attorney General, Josh Kaul, the state’s top law enforcement official.
The horror was recorded by the city’s livestream and spectators’ cell phones. Video shows the moment the SUV passed the barricades and the sound of what appears to be several gunshots. Eyewitnesses said, a Waukesha police officer fired his gun, in an attempt to stop the vehicle. No passerby was injured by the gunfire. It was unsure whether the driver was hit by the officer’s bullets.
A woman told Fox6 television station in Milwaukee that, the SUV struck a dance team, made up of girls aged nine to 15. She said, the immediate reaction was silence, followed by screaming, running and checking the injured. Images on social media showed small groups surrounding injured girls with white pom-poms strewn about.
The Milwaukee Dancing Grannies posted on their Facebook page that, “Band members and volunteers have been affected and we are awaiting information on their conditions.” The group profile describes them as a “group of grannies who meet once a week to practice summer and winter parade routines.”
Mayor Shawn Reilly said, it was a “traumatic” time for the city. “My heart goes out to all who are touched by this senseless act,” he added. A Catholic priest, several parishioners and Waukesha Catholic schoolchildren were among the injured, said Milwaukee Archdiocese spokeswoman, Sandra Peterson.
Chris Germain, co-owner of studio Aspire Dance Centre, had around 70 people in the parade. Germain, whose three-year-old daughter was in the parade, said, he was driving at the head of their driveway, when he saw a brown SUV that “just went up in front of us.” A police officer chased after it. Germain said, he jumped out of his own SUV and rounded up the girls who were with him to safety.– NNN-AGENCIES
