Police in Wichita say they are investigating a “mass casualty incident” at the Stryker Sports Complex. There is no further threat to the public.
A driver is in custody after a vehicle drove through a crowd at a sports complex in Wichita, Kansas, leaving two people dead, one of them a child, and several others injured. Emergency services were called to the Stryker Sports Complex on Greenwich Road after reports of a “mass casualty incident”. A police spokesman said: “WPD is investigating a mass casualty incident involving a vehicle. There is no further ongoing threat at this time.” Police have not said whether the collision was deliberate.
What witnesses describe
Local television station KWCH reported an account from a witness who said a black pickup truck drove through fields where youth soccer was being played. The witness said it struck several people and carried on for about 100 to 200 yards before stopping. Emergency crews treated victims across the scene, and some responders were reportedly carrying out CPR.
The complex hosts organised youth competitions, particularly soccer. Eyewitness accounts suggest the vehicle entered an area where young players and spectators were gathered. That raises questions about whether it crossed a car park, a perimeter barrier or another entrance, but its exact route has not been verified. The accounts have not been confirmed through a police reconstruction.
Casualties
Two people are confirmed dead. Early local reports suggested up to ten people may have been seriously or critically injured. That figure is preliminary and has not been confirmed by police. Reuters has confirmed that multiple people were injured, but gives no definitive breakdown. Police have not named the victims or given their ages, apart from saying that one of those who died was a child. It is not known whether they were players, parents or spectators, or which hospitals received the injured.
What is not known
Some local accounts on social media claim that two children were passengers in the vehicle. Police have not confirmed this, and nothing is known about their identities, whether they were hurt or their relationship to the driver.
Conflicting explanations are circulating online. Some commenters say the driver was a parent angry about a child’s soccer game, while others suggest a medical emergency. Wichita Police have confirmed neither. No official finding on alcohol, drugs or motive has been announced. An arrest does not in itself show that the collision was intentional.
It is also unclear who the driver is or how old, whether charges have been filed, whether upcoming events at the complex have been cancelled, and whether police have recovered CCTV or vehicle-camera footage.
