Washington
One man was killed and another injured in what US authorities said Sunday was a “tragic accident” at a Pride parade in Florida where a pickup truck driver unintentionally accelerated, striking pedestrians.
The incident happened at the start of the Wilton Manors Stonewall Pride Parade and festival on Saturday, an LGBTQ celebration in a town near Fort Lauderdale in the southern US state, causing initial confusion whether the accident was part of a deliberate attack.
Fort Lauderdale Police announced Sunday that the 77-year-old driver was a participant in the festivities who had been selected to drive the lead vehicle due to “ailments preventing him from walking during the duration.”
The white pickup had begun to move forward anticipating the start of the parade when it “accelerated unexpectedly, striking two pedestrians” before crashing into the fence of a nearby business, the police said in a statement.
All three men were members of the Fort Lauderdale Gay Men’s Chorus, the police said, adding that the driver was cooperative with authorities.
The two adult men were transported to a medical center where one later died, according to the statement. The other remains hospitalized but is expected to survive.—APP
