Car drives into crowd ahead of Espanyol-Barcelona derby, 16 injured

At least 13 people have been left injured after a car drove through a crowd of people outside the RCDE Stadium ahead of the Espanyol-Barcelona derby on Thursday night.

Videos of the incident were shared on social media.

A white car stopped in the middle of a crowd that was shouting at the occupants and throwing objects at the car, before the vehicle sped into the crowd, taking several people with it.

The driver of the car has since been arrested. 

 

Catalan police reported that a person lost control of the vehicle and that the injuries sustained were only light.

At first, police said they considered the incident to be accidental.

Five minutes into the game, a large part of the fans in the Espanyol singing section behind one of the goals vacated their area as a protest against the game continuing because of the incident. 

If Barcelona win the game, they will be crowd 2024/25 La Liga champions.

Ten ambulances were sent to attend to the injured.

Police have said the situation is under control and that "in no case" does it pose a risk to the people inside the stadium.

One of the people hit by the car is the son of the mayor of Badalona, ​​Xavier Garcia Albiol.

Council sources have explained that the injured person is fine, that the vehicle ran over his foot, and that the mayor went to the scene. Both are now in hospital.

Fan fury

Some fans expressed anger at the fact that went ahead despite the incident. Cristian García asked "who thinks it's normal that a match can be played in these circumstances?" He was first worried that an terror attack may have happened when he first heard that a car had driven into a crowd.

Alejandro García, another Espanyol fan, was particularly angry at his club's board. He explained that a friend of his suffered a fractured leg. "How is the match played? And what are the board doing? Nothing. "It's a shame for the club and the board," he said.

Hugo Mulero explained to the Catalan News Agency that he saw the car "start to accelerate and take away the people at the front of it."

Finally, Paula Sanchís said she did not know how the driver entered the area where the fans were. "I think she got nervous and ran over people."

Driver may have felt "harassed," police commissioner says

Police commissioner Eduard Sallent has suggested that the driver did so because she felt "harassed" by the football fans.

Sallent said this in a press conference at the Espanyol stadium, where he offered support to the families and injured people.

The driver tested negative for alcohol and drugs and will be brought before the courts in the coming hours.

The police hypothesis is that the incident was "incidental." They rule out the possibility that an error was made by the security device, as the street was open.

"It was nine o'clock at night and fans had to be allowed access to the stadium. It is not an extraordinary situation, but it is that the driver accelerated," Sallent added.