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Two children hurt in Christmas market car incident

BBC A picture of the high street in Chipping Sodbury with barriers set up on the left side of the road. Behind the barriers there are lots of people, stretching all the way down the road into the distance. There is a police car parked in the middle of the road, and several police officers speaking to bystanders. BBC
Seven pedestrians were assessed by ambulance crews at the scene

Two young children, including a baby, have been taken to hospital after a car crashed into a group of pedestrians at a Christmas market.

South Western Ambulance Service received a call at 11:58 GMT on Sunday regarding the incident on the High Street in Chipping Sodbury, near Bristol. Five adults were also hurt.

Avon and Somerset Police said a man - believed to be in his 80s - collided with pedestrians at a low-speed while manoeuvring out of a parking space.

A spokesperson said that despite the large emergency response no one is currently described as having either life-threatening or life-changing injuries.

A police car parked in the middle of the road. Behind it are several stalls set up for the market, in front of a historic looking stone building.
The fire service, ambulance crews and police worked jointly to provide casualty care at the scene

Five ambulances, an air ambulance, and several other resources were dispatched to the market town, which is around 18 miles (29km) north-east of Bristol.

Seven pedestrians, including five adults and two children, were assessed by paramedics at the scene.

In a statement posted to Facebook, the organisers confirmed the Christmas Sunday event was still ongoing, despite the injuries.

They said: "We have been advised by the police not to cancel today's event, so the remainder of the High Street from Hobbs House Bakery down towards Broad Street and Horse Street is still open.

"We would ask anyone attending today to please not take photos of the incident, and not speculate on social media as we work with the emergency services to help those people who need assistance."

The event began at 11:00 GMT and is due to finish at 17:30 GMT.

Esra Ward wearing a blue fleece pullover, a colourful knitted scarf and beige apron with red trim. She has brown hair, brown hairs and a nose ring. She is looking just above the camera, and in the background there are police gathered near the scene of the incident.
Witness Esra Ward said the incident happened very quickly

Esra Ward, who is running a pizza stall at the market, saw the whole thing unfold.

“We were just talking with the customers in front of our van," she said.

"The car was parked, and suddenly we saw him accelerate coming out of his parking space and hit a couple of people.

“There was a mum with a baby in a pushchair in front of the car. Apparently at the back he has hit a few more people, a family. They had ambulances and police and fire all here in about five minutes."

A man wearing glasses a dark Christmas jumper and dark coat standing in front of a crowd of people looking into the camera
Market stall holder Ady Jones said he was left "shaken" by the incident

Market stall holder Ady Jones said he felt "shaken" after seeing the car "career" off the pavement.

"There was a loud screech. There was lots of shouting and clearly people had been injured," he said.

"The stalls had to close for quite a while, but thankfully people were not seriously injured.

"The situation could have been far worse."

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