A Wexford man who was in Liverpool last night with his family has spoken of the terrifying moment a car ploughed into pedestrians, just moments after a city parade ended near the docks.
Gary, who had travelled to Liverpool with his parents and siblings, described being within 100 yards of the scene on Water Street when the incident unfolded.
“We were just hanging back, waiting for the crowd to thin out,” he said. “There was music, a great atmosphere. Then suddenly, there was this commotion behind us — a car surrounded by people. Some were hitting the car, others shouting. At first, we thought it was just someone being forceful trying to get through.”
What followed was a swift and overwhelming emergency response.
“Within 5–10 minutes, police were running in from all directions, ambulances pulling up, and paramedics rushing to help people. You could feel the shift in atmosphere — people started backing away, and the area was quickly taped off.”
The incident occurred approximately 25 minutes after the parade had ended. Gary and his family had considered walking up the very street where the car later mounted the pavement — a chilling near-miss that only became fully apparent when they later saw news coverage.
“We were just lucky we hung back. Seeing the footage on the news later and realising what had happened… it was shocking.”
Despite the chaos, Gary praised the swift and professional response of emergency services.
“They had the area under control fast. Police were directing people away from the scene, and medical staff were attending to those injured.”
Following the incident, the family took time to decompress before boarding a late ferry back to Ireland.
“We stopped for food and tried to process it all. Then in the hotel, we saw it all over the news and social media. It was surreal to know we were right there when it happened.”
Gary expressed his relief that he and his family were safe and hoped that those injured recover quickly. No fatalities have been reported so far.
“It was frightening, but we’re grateful to be okay. Just hope everyone else will be too.”
