On the eve of China’s premier aviation exhibition by the People’s Liberation Army, hosted annually in the Southern Chinese city of Zhuhai, a 62-year-old man was detained by the police after ramming a car into people exercising at a sport center.
Police reported the incidence on Monday night confirming more than 20 people injured with no report of death yet
It was not immediately clear whether it was an attack or an accident. No motive was mentioned, and police said investigations continued.
Police identified the man only by his family name of Fan, consistent with the practice by Chinese authorities. The police statement said the vehicle knocked down “a number of” of pedestrians Monday evening.
According to Associated Press, a man at the emergency clinic of Shang Chong Hospital in Zhuhai said they had received some slightly injured people and most of them left after the treatment. Zhuhai People’s Hospital said they received the injured, but did not offer a detailed number of the casualties. Calls to the Xiangzhou District People’s Hospital and the Third People’s Hospital of Zhuhai went unanswered.
Videos showed a firefighter performing CPR on a person, as people were told to leave the scene. They were shared by news blogger and dissident Li Ying, who is better known on X as Teacher Li. His account posts daily news based on user submissions. Dozens of people were lying prone on the running track in the sports center in the videos. In one, a woman says “my foot is broken.”
By Tuesday morning, searches for the incident on Chinese social media were heavily censored on Chinese social media platforms. A search on Weibo for the sports center only turned up a few posts, with only a couple referring to the fact something had happened, without pictures or details. Articles by Chinese media about the incident from Monday night were taken down.
Chinese internet censors take extra care to scrub social media ahead of and during major events, such as the meeting of the National People’s Congress, where the government announces its major policy initiatives for the coming year.
The sports center for the city district of Xiangzhou regularly attracts hundreds of residents, where they can run on the track field, play soccer and social dance. Following the incident, the center announced it would be closed until further notice.


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