A man was detained when a supercar ploughed into an Israeli family of five on vacation in Ramsgate, resulting in the death of two individuals and the severe injury of a schoolgirl.
At around 9:35 p.m. yesterday night, a black Alfa Romeo collided with them as they stood on the side of the road in front of the Leopold Street multi-story parking garage.
A man in his 80s and a woman in her 30s passed away shortly afterwards.
The girl in elementary school also sustained significant injuries and was sent to a hospital in London for treatment.
A man in his forties and a boy in elementary school suffered minor injuries. The police have established that the family was not a local. A resident claimed they assumed they were Israeli tourists on vacation.
Anastasiya, 42, who declined to provide her second name, said, ‘It was a big crash. A car was driving down the road while people were waiting for the bus.
‘I was there just after it happened and called the ambulance and the police and they came really quickly. They arrived around 10pm.
‘The police have told us the family were from Israel.’
Anastasiya, who has lived in Ramsgate for five years and works nearby the crash site, said she saw the fire brigade lifting the car off a woman before medics tried to resuscitate her with CPR.
She said: ‘The mum was under the car and the fire brigade used a fork lift to get her out.
‘They then did CPR on her but she had no chance of surviving.
‘They tried but she was already dead.’
This morning, the section of the roadway where the collision occurred was cordoned off.
The wall opposite the entrance to a multi-story parking garage has been destroyed, and a road sign has been thrown to the ground.
The accident has also resulted in the removal of a bench.
Mayor of Ramsgate Cllr. Raushan Ara, who owns a local company, expressed sympathy for the family.
She commented in response to the incident, ‘It’s so sad. I was frightened last night because there so many police cars and ambulances – and the fire engines were going up and down until 11pm.’
Cllr Ara said that the event underscores the necessity for ‘speed controls’ in the city, with a limit reduction to 20 mph.
She added: ‘We have been fighting for this for many years.’
This evening at 7 o’clock, Cllr. Ara will hold a vigil at the crash site.
A spokesman for Kent Police said: ‘Officers attended and a 30-year-old man from Ramsgate was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and leaving the scene of a collision.
‘He is also currently receiving hospital treatment for minor injuries.
‘Enquiries into the incident are being carried out by officers from the Serious Collision Investigation Unit who are keen to hear from any witnesses, local businesses with CCTV evidence or drivers with relevant dashcam footage.’