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A member of a gay men’s chorus group unintentionally slammed into fellow chorists at the start of a Pride parade in South Florida, killing one member of the group and seriously injuring another, the group’s director said Sunday, correcting initial speculation that it was a hate crime directed at the gay community.
Wilton Manors Vice Mayor Paul Rolli and Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said the early investigation shows it was an accident. The 77-year-old driver was taken into custody, but police said no charges have been filed and the investigation is ongoing.
The elderly driver had ailments that prevented him from walking, according to a statement Sunday from Fort Lauderdale Police, who said he was cooperating with the investigation and there was no evidence drugs or alcohol was involved.
The driver allegedly told police ‘that his foot became stuck between the gas pedal and the brake causing him to lose control of the vehicle’, CBS 4 reported.
‘The early investigation now indicates it looks like it was a tragic accident, but nobody’s saying finally what it is,’ Rolli said in a phone interview.
Trantalis, who is Fort Lauderdale’s first openly gay mayor, initially told reporters the act was deliberate, adding to the confusion Saturday night.
In the immediate aftermath of the incident, Trantalis told The Sun Sentinel: ‘This was a terrorist attack against the LGBTQ community. He [the driver of the truck] came here to destroy people. This was clearly no accident.’
On Sunday he said in a statement on Twitter: ‘It terrorized me and all around me … I feared it could be intentional based on what I saw from mere feet away. As the facts continue to be pieced together, a picture is emerging of an accident in which a truck careened out of control.’
Surveillance video shows the moment a pickup truck plowed into a garden center seconds after hitting people at a Pride parade in Fort Lauderdale
The video shows the pickup truck, flying a rainbow flag, driving through a fence and hitting plants at Fort Lauderdale Garden Center
One person is dead, and another is in a critical condition after a pick-up truck driver slammed into spectators at the start of a Pride parade in Florida
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis initially told reporters the act was deliberate
Surveillance video shows the moment a pickup truck, flying a rainbow flag, driving through a fence and hitting plants at Fort Lauderdale Garden Center.
The tragedy occurred 7pm Saturday evening in Wilton Manors, 10 miles north of Fort Lauderdale, just as The Stonewall Pride Parade and Street Festival began.
The driver and the victims were a part of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men´s Chorus family, a small 25-member group of mostly older men.
‘Our fellow Chorus members were those injured and the driver is also a part of the Chorus family. To my knowledge, this was not an attack on the LGBTQ community,’ President Justin Knight said in a statement Sunday, calling it ‘an unfortunate accident.’
Rolli was on the float in front of the chorus truck along with Trantalis and other city officials at a staging area where the floats were being readied. Trantalis said the driver of a pickup truck suddenly accelerated when he was told he was next in the parade, crashing into the victims.
The driver continued across all lanes of traffic, ultimately crashing into a fence on the other side of the street, police said.
Rolli was on the other side of the float and didn’t witness the crash, but jumped off immediately and ran to the victims. In the confusion, it was unclear what happened.
‘People were really distraught and some people were crying,’ said Rolli, who explained that the crash happened in an area where the floats were lining up, so there weren’t as many parade-goers. ‘I was getting phone calls from people I knew at the other end waiting for the parade saying, “Is this true? Is that true, do we have anything to worry about?” You don´t know at that point.’
Fort Lauderdale Police said no arrests have been made saying they are conducting a thorough investigation with the FBI, nothing in a statement they are ‘considering and evaluating all possibilities.’
Wilton Manors is a tight-knit community near Fort Lauderdale with a vibrant downtown filled with cute shops, where people line up for Rosie´s famous hamburgers or to gossip and drink at Georgie´s Alibi Monkey Bar.
Photos and video from the scene showed Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz in tears while in a convertible at the parade.
In a statement Saturday night, Wasserman Schultz said she was safe but ‘deeply shaken and devastated that a life was lost.’
Police and firefighters responded to the scene shortly after 7pm on Saturday. One person has been declared dead, two others were injured
The driver was taken into custody, by police. Local 10 reported he had a rainbow flag on his pick-up truck and was wearing a Gay Men’s Chorus t-shirt
Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz was in attendance at the event, and the driver is reported to have ‘narrowly’ missed hitting her as he plowed into the participants
‘I am so heartbroken by what took place at this celebration,’ she said. ‘May the memory of the life lost be for a blessing.’
She missed being hit by the truck by ‘a matter of inches’.
A spokesman for the chorus said the director did not want to give interviews, adding that many members of the small group witnessed the fatal crash and were deeply shaken.
‘The reason people like Wilton manors is the whole community is one big family and that´s how we treat each other … and this has really rattled a lot of people,’ said Rolli. ‘Even if it´s an accident, just the loss of a life.’
A Local10 reporter shared this image, purportedly showing the white pick-up truck after it plowed into the participants and ended up in a nearby nursery
Bystanders came to the aid of one injured man who was seen lying in the middle of the road after the pick-up plowed through
Stunned spectators were seen fleeing after the car plowed through the crowd
Police and first responders were seen as a man lay on the road following the crash
A pair of shoes were seen on the road which was roped off by police shortly after the incident
Police tried to clear participants and spectators off the road as an investigation into the crash commenced
A cop car – which had the words ‘Policing With Pride’ splayed across its front – was seen in the area after the tragedy
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., is comforted after a truck drove into a crowd of people during The Stonewall Pride Parade
Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried was also at the parade, and sent out a message to her followers after the tragedy.
‘I’m lucky to be safe, but at least two people were hit and are in critical condition,’ she wrote.
‘All of us here all praying for them and their families.’
Police tweeted Saturday night that the parade was canceled due to a ‘tragic event.’ The department said the public is not in danger.
Broward County Sheriff Gregory Tony said on Facebook that he had also been at the scene.
‘This tragedy took place within feet of me and my (Broward Sheriff’s Office) team, and we are devastated having witnessed this horrific incident,’ he said.
‘Our prayers are with the victims and their families. Be sure to hug the ones you love tonight.’
June is Pride Month, which commemorates the 1969 Stonewall riots sparked by repeated police raids on a popular gay bar in New York. The demonstrations proved to be a turning point in the LGBTQ community’s struggle for civil rights.
Wasserman Schultz appeared distressed as she sat in a convertible following the tragedy. According to reports, she narrowly avoided being struck by the driver
A float is seen laying abandoned after the parade was cancelled due to the tragedy
Rep. Wasserman Schultz tweeted late Saturday: ‘I am deeply shaken and devastated that a life was lost and others seriously injured at tonight’s Stonewall #Pride Parade. My staff, volunteers and I are thankfully safe’
