An 80-year-old driver slammed his car into a crowd of pedestrians in Argentina, injuring 13 people including a baby and two children who were briefly trapped beneath the vehicle.
The crash occurred late last Wednesday in Cerrillos, a town in Argentina’s Salta province, when the elderly motorist lost control of his blue Renault and mounted the sidewalk outside a row of shops. Nine adults and four children were struck in the incident, among them a 1-year-old infant.
Bystanders rushed to aid the victims as the Renault came to rest on top of some of the younger casualties. Emilio, a witness who helped at the scene, described the desperate effort to free those pinned underneath. “We had to lift the car to be able to get another minor out,” he told Gente de Salta, adding that the crash happened in a “very urban” area where cars travel at high speed.
“It could have been a tragedy,” Emilio continued.
The two oldest child victims, ages 5 and 11, were hospitalized following the crash along with several adult victims. All have since been discharged, according to local reports.
Argentine officials administered a breathalyzer test to the 80-year-old driver, which came back negative. Authorities have not publicly detailed what caused the elderly motorist to lose control and plow into the group of shoppers and pedestrians gathered outside the storefronts.
Emilio offered his own theory about what went wrong. “It seems he fainted,” the witness said.
The incident drew a swift response from emergency services and volunteers who worked alongside concerned locals to assist the injured. The area where the crash took place is described as densely populated, with heavy foot traffic near commercial establishments creating conditions where high vehicle speeds pose particular danger to pedestrians.
The 1-year-old baby was among those hurt in the collision, though details of the infant’s injuries and current condition have not been disclosed. The fact that all hospitalized victims have been released suggests none suffered critical or life-threatening wounds, despite the dramatic circumstances of the crash and the initial fears sparked by children being trapped under the Renault.
The driver’s age and the possibility that he lost consciousness behind the wheel have raised questions about fitness-to-drive assessments for elderly motorists in Argentina, though no policy changes have been announced in the immediate aftermath of the Cerrillos crash.
Local officials continue to investigate the exact cause of the accident as the community recovers from the shock of the sidewalk collision.