A car hit a group of people in the southwestern German city, resulting in at least two deaths. A police operation is ongoing.
At least one person was killed after a car drove into a group of people in a central pedestrian area in the German city of Mannheim on Monday, police confirmed.
Another person has since succumbed to injuries, according to national news agency dpa, citing security sources, bringing the death toll to two.
Initially, local media in the southwestern city reported witnesses, including a dpa reporter, saw a body covered with a sheet. Multiple people are believed to be injured, with the media reporting the number could be as high as 25.
The suspect has been apprehended during a search, authorities said.
A police operation in Mannheim’s city centre and Paradenplatz pedestrian street where the incident took place continued on Monday afternoon. Earlier in the day, warning apps reported a life-threatening situation, domestic media said.
The Mannheim University Hospital has gone into “disaster response” mode, it said in a statement. At least three seriously injured people — two adults and a child — are being treated there.
The public are being asked to avoid downtown Mannheim “and to take a wide detour”, with a large law enforcement presence, including a police helicopter reported in the area, also implementing traffic checks on nearby bridges.
The Mannheim police have also issued an appeal, warning of “numerous fake news in circulation in connection with the crime” and asking citizens to refrain from sharing videos of the incident and only inform themselves through official channels.
The car used in the apparent attack has since been identified as a dark-coloured or black compact SUV or similar. The vehicle “raced” at high speed and struck several pedestrians in the main shopping street, according to reports.
Mannheim is a city of about 300,000 people located some 80 kilometres south of Frankfurt.
Several German cities are set to hold parades this week to mark the country’s carnival season. While the parade in Mannheim took place on Sunday, the city centre was still bustling with activity on Monday.
The incident comes just weeks after two people were killed in a car ramming attack in Munich.
This is a developing story and our journalists are working on further updates.
