A car ploughed into a crowd of rugby league supporters in the Australian city of Newcastle on Saturday morning, injuring ten people, two of them critically, police in New South Wales said. The crowd had gathered to farewell the Newcastle Knights team bus ahead of the club's National Rugby League grand final against the Sydney Roosters on Sunday.
The two critically injured are a five-year-old girl and a 67-year-old man. The other eight, who include a two-year-old girl and another five-year-old girl, are in a stable condition. All were treated at the scene by paramedics and taken to John Hunter Hospital. Emergency services were called to Newcastle Link Road, near the Transfield Drive roundabout in Wallsend, at about 9.30am. Newcastle is a coastal city roughly 160 kilometres north of Sydney. More than 1,000 people were reportedly in the area, and the roads minister, Jenny Aitchison, said the incident could have been worse.
Police arrested the driver, an 18-year-old man on a provisional (P-plate) licence, at the scene and took him to hospital for mandatory drug and alcohol testing. Assistant Commissioner David Waddell said there were reports he had been driving erratically before losing control. Police do not believe the crash was terror-related, and he is expected to be charged later on Saturday. Two other people were in the car; police said they had to be removed from the scene because the angry crowd turned on them.
How the car entered the crowd is still under investigation. Newcastle Lord Mayor Gavin Morris, citing authorities, said the driver was a Knights fan who appeared to have been revving the car out of excitement before losing control and going sideways into the crowd. A local MP, Dan Repacholi, wrote on Facebook that the car appeared to be performing a "burnout", in which the wheels spin while the car stays largely in place. A witness, Dylan Prior, told ABC News he saw "some young kids go flying" and people rushing to help, with others screaming for help and yelling at the driver. Footage on social media appeared to show the car being driven fast around the roundabout shortly before the crash.
The Knights changed the route of their grand final procession, saying public safety was its priority, and police asked fans to leave the area so emergency crews could work. Police Minister Yasmin Catley said many lives had been affected by a "split-second decision" and urged motorists to take care over the long weekend. Premier Chris Minns called it heartbreaking, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who spoke with Minns and offered federal support, said the weekend "should have been a weekend of excitement and pride for Newcastle fans."
The grand final has been a source of unity for the city, and officials have stressed the need for the community to stay together as the investigation continues.