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Daily Mirror
5 days ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mirror
Angry Liverpool shop owners ask why roads were open to vehicles before disaster
Despite warnings given to businesses about the expected crowds, not all roads on the route were closed for the parade which ended in chaos and 79 people injured after a car crashed into fans Angry shop owners have questioned why some roads remained open to vehicles for the Liverpool FC homecoming. Despite warnings given to businesses about the expected crowds, Dale Street in the centre of Liverpool was not completely closed. The parade ended in chaos, with 79 people injured after a car crashed into fans on adjoining Water Street. Months of planning went into the event, and a "robust traffic management plan" was in place, Liverpool city council said. But Gareth Morgan, 46, owner of The Dead Crafty Beer Company on Dale Street, outlined how he was told to remove street furniture for the event last Monday. He demanded to know why vehicles were still allowed access. "When you have 800,000 people walking back up to the city centre, it's crazy that any of the main roads in the city centre were open," he said. "Everyone I have spoken to is in agreement that it should not have been open to traffic. The pavements aren't big enough to take that volume of the public, so the only place for them to go is the road." Mohamad Abbar, of A2Z Mobile on Dale Street, added: "There were too many people on this road." Liverpool City Council stressed Dale St had not been completely closed for Liverpool FC victory parades in the past, and the bus had travelled on the same route as in 2019 and 2022. Elsewhere on the 10-mile route, one side of Queens Drive remained open. Again, crowds were forced onto the road at the same time as vehicles, including heavy goods wagons. Eyewitnesses told how 'dozens of HGVs' were on the route at the same time as big crowds. Cllr Alan Gibbons, who leads the city's Community Independents Group, submitted a Right to Know request to the city council regarding organisation of the parade. In an email to council chief executive Andrew Lewis, he wrote: "Based on footage circulating on social media and mainstream news outlets, a number of critical questions arise surrounding the circumstances of the incident, the preparedness of the authorities, and the overall safeguarding of the public. "Why does footage appear to show no visible police presence in the vicinity at the time of the vehicle entering the area? "What was the contingency plan in the event of a vehicle breach, and how was it communicated to officers and stewards on duty?" The city's Lib Dem leader Cllr Carl Cashman has called for a full independent inquiry. Merseyside Police Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims told how they worked with event organisers on traffic management. It included a number of road closures throughout the route and the city centre. Former Royal Marine Paul Doyle appeared at Liverpool Magistrates' Court and Liverpool Crown Court last week. He faced seven charges including wounding with intent, causing grievous bodily harm (GBH) with intent, attempting to cause GBH with intent and dangerous driving. Mr Doyle faces charges relating to six victims, including two children aged 11 and 17, after a total of 79 people were injured. He will next appear at Liverpool Crown Court on 14 August for a plea hearing.
The Age
28-05-2025
- The Age
How did a driver slip through road blocks and mow down Liverpool fans?
As the car moved back and forth behind another vehicle, tensions rose quickly, with at least two onlookers punching and kicking the car as the driver beeped its horn. The 53-year-old then appeared to reverse into a man who had just kicked off the back windscreen wiper. Separate footage showed another fan wearing a Liverpool banner opening the car door as it stopped reversing, before the driver pulled it shut and drove forward into the throngs of people on Water Street. Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims, from Merseyside Police, said that Water Street had been closed, but the driver 'was able to follow an ambulance … after the roadblock was temporarily lifted'. The ambulance appeared to have been parked, treating the casualty before the Ford Galaxy accelerated towards it, chased by onlookers throwing missiles. Police did not say how long the cordon had been lifted for, or respond to questions on why Dale Street was still open to cars, given its proximity to the parade. Mohamad Abbar, 31, a Liverpool fan who runs a vape shop on Dale Street, told The Telegraph: 'It's a joke that the police allowed the car to come in behind the ambulance. I don't know why they did that. 'You could hear thud, thud, thud as it ran people over. A paramedic on a bike was hit, too. There were screams … it was horrible.' Paul O'Brien, Liverpool fan 'It wasn't normal the way he was driving. He was zig-zagging all over the place, as if he was trying to hit people. 'The people started to push his car first, and then they opened the door. He didn't have control. After that, he hit everyone. This was supposed to be closed to all cars. The problem, in my opinion, is from the police because they did not cover it.' Videos from the other end of the crowd showed the driver going past the ambulance and into people who appeared to be trying to stop him. 'Perfect day' changed As the car gathered speed, one man in a football kit was thrown onto the bonnet before flying onto the ground as other onlookers scattered. Daniel Eveson had travelled from his home in Telford to watch the parade with his partner and baby son when he saw fans rushing toward them and 'people going flying and people screaming and just terror, pure terror'. What had been the 'perfect day' changed 'under a sea of chaos' into 'the worst day of my life'. The car struck him in the chest before his partner went under its wheels and was dragged down the road. 'My partner went under the wheel. The car went over her leg and she got dragged down the road,' he told BBC Radio Shropshire. 'My little boy got chucked 10, 12, 15 feet down the road in his pram.' He added: 'I didn't know where my boy was, if he was alive. Then I saw him alive – it was a lot to take on. 'I thought I'd lost everything. I don't think I will ever be able to go to a parade or a celebration again.' At one point, the Ford seemed to slow and veer into a throng of people, before gathering speed and eventually coming to a stop. Four people trapped under the car, including a child, were later freed by firefighters. Fan Paul O'Brien, 39, who had travelled from Ireland for the parade with his 11-year-old son Danny and elderly parents, said that they were only saved by 'hero Scousers' who pulled them to safety. 'If it wasn't for those amazing Liverpool fans, I dread to think what would have happened,' he told The Mirror. 'We may not have been here today. It had been such a fantastic day, full of joy and celebrations, so for it to end the way it did is so sad. 'We were walking up the hill, and the next thing we knew, we could hear the car, and then we were getting shoved out of the way of it. Then it carried on through the crowd, and you could hear thud, thud, thud as it ran people over. A paramedic on a bike was hit, too. There were screams … it was horrible.' As the car came to a halt with people trapped beneath it, it was swarmed by fans. Some appeared to be punching the driver, and at least two could be seen clambering into the passenger seat as people in the background screamed, 'kill him, f---ing kill him'. The back window of the vehicle had been smashed in, revealing items in the boot covered with a child's blanket. The same scene filmed from above showed dozens of uniformed police racing from both sides to get to the car and pushing the crowd back before they formed a protective circle around the man and bundled him into the police van. More than 50 people were treated in different hospitals, and 11 people remained there on Tuesday in a stable condition The tragedy darkened a day that should have been filled with celebrations for a club with a fan base that endured the Hillsborough disaster of 1989, gaining a reputation for coming together in the face of catastrophes. Ian Byrne, Labour MP for Liverpool West Derby, said that the city would 'do what it always does' and 'come back stronger'. He said: 'We'll make sure that everybody's okay, and then we'll have to get up and dust ourselves off, reflect on what's happened'.
Sydney Morning Herald
28-05-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
How did a driver slip through road blocks and mow down Liverpool fans?
As the car moved back and forth behind another vehicle, tensions rose quickly, with at least two onlookers punching and kicking the car as the driver beeped its horn. The 53-year-old then appeared to reverse into a man who had just kicked off the back windscreen wiper. Separate footage showed another fan wearing a Liverpool banner opening the car door as it stopped reversing, before the driver pulled it shut and drove forward into the throngs of people on Water Street. Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims, from Merseyside Police, said that Water Street had been closed, but the driver 'was able to follow an ambulance … after the roadblock was temporarily lifted'. The ambulance appeared to have been parked, treating the casualty before the Ford Galaxy accelerated towards it, chased by onlookers throwing missiles. Police did not say how long the cordon had been lifted for, or respond to questions on why Dale Street was still open to cars, given its proximity to the parade. Mohamad Abbar, 31, a Liverpool fan who runs a vape shop on Dale Street, told The Telegraph: 'It's a joke that the police allowed the car to come in behind the ambulance. I don't know why they did that. 'You could hear thud, thud, thud as it ran people over. A paramedic on a bike was hit, too. There were screams … it was horrible.' Paul O'Brien, Liverpool fan 'It wasn't normal the way he was driving. He was zig-zagging all over the place, as if he was trying to hit people. 'The people started to push his car first, and then they opened the door. He didn't have control. After that, he hit everyone. This was supposed to be closed to all cars. The problem, in my opinion, is from the police because they did not cover it.' Videos from the other end of the crowd showed the driver going past the ambulance and into people who appeared to be trying to stop him. 'Perfect day' changed As the car gathered speed, one man in a football kit was thrown onto the bonnet before flying onto the ground as other onlookers scattered. Daniel Eveson had travelled from his home in Telford to watch the parade with his partner and baby son when he saw fans rushing toward them and 'people going flying and people screaming and just terror, pure terror'. What had been the 'perfect day' changed 'under a sea of chaos' into 'the worst day of my life'. The car struck him in the chest before his partner went under its wheels and was dragged down the road. 'My partner went under the wheel. The car went over her leg and she got dragged down the road,' he told BBC Radio Shropshire. 'My little boy got chucked 10, 12, 15 feet down the road in his pram.' He added: 'I didn't know where my boy was, if he was alive. Then I saw him alive – it was a lot to take on. 'I thought I'd lost everything. I don't think I will ever be able to go to a parade or a celebration again.' At one point, the Ford seemed to slow and veer into a throng of people, before gathering speed and eventually coming to a stop. Four people trapped under the car, including a child, were later freed by firefighters. Fan Paul O'Brien, 39, who had travelled from Ireland for the parade with his 11-year-old son Danny and elderly parents, said that they were only saved by 'hero Scousers' who pulled them to safety. 'If it wasn't for those amazing Liverpool fans, I dread to think what would have happened,' he told The Mirror. 'We may not have been here today. It had been such a fantastic day, full of joy and celebrations, so for it to end the way it did is so sad. 'We were walking up the hill, and the next thing we knew, we could hear the car, and then we were getting shoved out of the way of it. Then it carried on through the crowd, and you could hear thud, thud, thud as it ran people over. A paramedic on a bike was hit, too. There were screams … it was horrible.' As the car came to a halt with people trapped beneath it, it was swarmed by fans. Some appeared to be punching the driver, and at least two could be seen clambering into the passenger seat as people in the background screamed, 'kill him, f---ing kill him'. The back window of the vehicle had been smashed in, revealing items in the boot covered with a child's blanket. The same scene filmed from above showed dozens of uniformed police racing from both sides to get to the car and pushing the crowd back before they formed a protective circle around the man and bundled him into the police van. More than 50 people were treated in different hospitals, and 11 people remained there on Tuesday in a stable condition The tragedy darkened a day that should have been filled with celebrations for a club with a fan base that endured the Hillsborough disaster of 1989, gaining a reputation for coming together in the face of catastrophes. Ian Byrne, Labour MP for Liverpool West Derby, said that the city would 'do what it always does' and 'come back stronger'. He said: 'We'll make sure that everybody's okay, and then we'll have to get up and dust ourselves off, reflect on what's happened'.
