A driver killed 35 people and severely injured another 43 when he drove his car into people exercising at a fitness center in the southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, police said on Tuesday.
As reported by The Guardian, police detained a 62-year-old man late Monday. Police identified the man only by his family name of Fan, as is customary with Chinese authorities. Fan was discovered in the car with a knife and wounds to his neck thought to be self-inflicted, according to the police statement. Police said he was unconscious and receiving medical care. They added that their preliminary investigation suggested he had been dissatisfied with the split of financial assets in his divorce.
"For almost 24 hours after the crime took place, it was unclear what the death or injury toll was," Amy Hawkins of The Guardian wrote. "One of the four hospitals that took in people for treatment said it had more than 20 injured, state media reported on Monday. Calls made to the hospitals in the city by AP reporters went unanswered, or were directed towards other hospitals."
On Tuesday morning, searches for details on the incident were heavily censored on Chinese social media platforms. Articles by Chinese media were taken down.
"Chinese internet censors take extra care to scrub social media before and during big events," according to Hawkins, who added that video that did break through on X showed dozens of people lying prone on the running track in the sports center. In one, a woman says “my foot is broken”, and a firefighter can be seen performing CPR on someone, as people are told to leave the scene.
The incident happened on the day before China’s biggest airshow, which opened in Zhuhai on Tuesday. The sports center, which serves the city district of Xiangzhou, regularly attracts hundreds of people, who run on its track, play football and dance. After the incident, the centre announced it would be closed until further notice.
On Tuesday, Xi Jinping, China’s president, urged local officials to ensure social stability and called for “all-out efforts” to treat the injured, according to state media cited by Hawkins of The Guardian, who added that it was reported that Xi had dispatched a team from Beijing to oversee the handling of the incident.
