Posted: 14:03, August 26, 2022 | Updated: 15:08, 26 August 2022
This is the terrifying moment a van plowed into people sitting on a cafe terrace in Brussels at ‘extremely high speed’, injuring six people.
The video shows the male suspect driving a van into the lounge outside a busy cafe in the center of the Belgian capital on Friday afternoon at around 13:00 local time (1100 GMT).
Six people were slightly injured and pictures from the scene on Rue Saint-Michel show tables and chairs strewn on the floor outside the cafe.
The driver did not stop after running over the victims and police are now chasing the suspect through the streets of Brussels after finding the truck abandoned.
Witnesses told Radio 1 they saw the van driving towards the cafe at “high speed while hovering side to side”.
One witness said he and his girlfriend “had to jump for our lives” to avoid being crushed by the van.
The video shows the male suspect driving a van into the lounge outside a cafe in central Brussels on Friday afternoon around 1pm local time
Six people were injured and photos from the scene show tables and chairs strewn on the floor outside the cafe
Six people were slightly injured and pictures from the scene on Rue Saint-Michel show tables and chairs strewn on the floor outside the cafe
The British embassy in Belgium said it was aware of the incident near the pedestrianized Rue Neuve and urged Britons in the area to follow “official instructions”.
Phillipe Close, the mayor of Brussels, told Le Soir newspaper that the van had entered Rue Saint-Michel “at extremely high speed and was aiming for the terrace”.
CCTV outside the cafe shows customers sitting on the terrace before the white van speeds towards them.
The truck is seen driving into the tables, with a few customers managing to jump out of the way at the last second.
A witness told Radio 1: “We were just enjoying the terrace. The terraces were quite full. Suddenly a white van came up at breakneck speed, swinging from side to side. We had to jump over the wall.’
Another witness told VRT: “The driver drove from left to right on the road and hit everything he met. We, my girlfriend and I, had to jump for our lives.’
He added: “This was intentional. He wanted to hit everything in his path. There was panic. People were screaming and shouting. I also saw some injured people. Most of them were in a state of shock. I was in shock myself. It was awful.’
Six people were slightly injured, but none of the victims were taken to hospital.
CCTV outside the cafe shows customers sitting on the terrace before the white van speeds towards them. The truck is seen driving into the tables, with a few customers managing to jump out of the way at the last second
The truck is seen ramming into the tables, with a few customers managing to jump out of the way
Police officers stand guard outside the cafe after a van driver entered the outside terrace area
Police are still looking for the suspect after finding the van abandoned on a road near the scene, HLN reports.
Specialist officers from the Belgian army’s bomb disposal unit check the van for explosions as a precautionary measure.
The witnesses have now been taken to the local police station as officers investigate the incident.
“These are tourists, city employees, residents and Belgians visiting the capital,” Mayor Clowes said of the victims.
Police said it was too early to speculate on whether the driver had deliberately targeted the restaurants.
This is breaking news, more to come…
