Police work at the scene after a driver crashed into several people in Brownsville, Texas. Photo: AFP
At least seven pedestrians were killed and several others injured on Sunday when an SUV mowed down people near a homeless shelter that attends to migrants in Brownsville, Texas, police said.
The male driver was in custody, Lieutenant Martin Sandoval of the Brownsville Police Department said, adding he was charged with reckless driving and could face additional charges.
The incident happened in the city of Brownsville near the Mexican border at about 8.30am local time on Sunday.
Sandoval said the victims in the morning crash were waiting at a bus stop near Ozanam Center, a shelter for the homeless used by migrants. He said some migrants were among the dead.
"We are doing an investigation in forms of intoxication to see if he was intoxicated at the time of the accident," Sandoval said on Fox News.
It was not clear if the driver had crashed into the group intentionally or lost control of the vehicle, Judge Eddie Trevino Jr. of Cameron County was quoted as telling the New York Times.
There no immediate details on how many people were injured or their condition.
The BBC reported the number of injures as at least six.
The border city of Brownsville is one of the places that expects an influx of migrants when Covid-era restrictions under Title 42 expire on Thursday.
A video circulating online purporting to show the crash shows a speeding SUV ploughing into a row of people sitting on the curb. A second video of the aftermath appears to show victims lying on the ground. Reuters was not able to independently verify the authenticity of the videos.
The deaths come less than 24 hours after a gunman fatally shot eight people at a mall in the Dallas suburb of Allen.
The shooter was also killed.
- Reuters / BBC