Nine dead after car crashes into Seoul City Hall: "It was not drunk driving"

This is an incident that happened in Seoul today.

 Accident at 9:27 PM: 1 critically injured, 3 with minor injuries Driver claims sudden unintended acceleration; investigation ongoing

A car crash near Seoul City Hall left nine people dead and four injured. It has been determined that the driver was not under the influence of alcohol.

According to police and fire authorities, at approximately 9:27 PM on the 1st, a Genesis car drove onto the sidewalk at the intersection near Seoul City Hall Station in Jung-gu, Seoul. The Genesis car, which was exiting a nearby hotel, drove in the wrong direction, collided sequentially with a BMW and a Sonata, and then veered into a crosswalk, striking pedestrians who were waiting for the traffic signal.

Initially, six people were reported dead, but three more succumbed to their injuries en route to the hospital in cardiac arrest, bringing the death toll to nine.

Among the four injured, one is in critical condition while three have minor injuries. Fortunately, their lives are not in danger. One of the three with minor injuries was treated at the hospital and has been discharged.

Yoon Young-deok, the head of the Jung-gu Public Health Center, said, "We have identified the six deceased and are securing contact information for their families through the district office. We are also identifying the three who died later and will contact their families as soon as we confirm their identities."

The fire department dispatched 37 fire trucks and 134 personnel immediately upon receiving the report and issued a Level 1 emergency response. By 9:45 PM, a temporary emergency medical station was set up on-site to handle the situation.

The police have arrested a man in his 70s who was driving the car at the time of the accident. The driver claims the car experienced sudden unintended acceleration. It has been confirmed that he was not intoxicated at the time. The extent of the driver’s injuries and whether there were any passengers is yet to be confirmed.

The police are conducting a thorough investigation to determine the exact cause of the accident. A police official stated, "We are also verifying the wrong-way driving. We will conduct a rigorous investigation through the driver’s statement, black box, and CCTV footage."