Kyrgyzstan: Truck Hits Students Performing at Event, Injuring 29

A truck has mowed through a crowd of students during a hillside event in Kyrgyzstan, injuring 29 children in an incident that was captured on video, media reported on Thursday.

The Health Ministry said three of the injured children were in a serious condition following the incident in Suzak district, the state-run Kabar News Agency reported. The agency said there was no driver in the truck, and that there were indications that the incident was accidental. An investigation is underway.

Video shows hundreds of people, many of them spectators and others in formation holding a huge national flag scatter as the truck goes down the hill and ploughs through the crowd. In another video, people are heard screaming and shouting as the truck is seen knocking over a tent.

The students had been performing Manas, an epic poem that is integral to Kyrgyz culture, as part of a competition, according to traffic safety officials.