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Hungary: Deaths reported after rally car hits spectators

March 24, 2024

Several people were killed after a race car veered off the road and hit a group of spectators in northern Hungary, near the Slovakian border.

https://p.dw.com/p/4e4ZD
A police car and an ambulance parked on the side of a rural road in Hungary
Police are investigating the deadly incidentImage: Ferenc Isza/AFP

A driver competing in a Hungarian motorsport rally on Sunday afternoon skidded off the road and crashed into a group of spectators, killing four and injuring at least seven, authorities have confirmed.

The event organizers, the Arrabona Rally Club, said the race was immediately halted as eight ambulances and four rescue helicopters were dispatched to treat the injured.

Local police said it was unclear why the vehicle, which was competing in the two-day Esztergom Nyerges Rally, veered off course between the towns of Labatlan and Bajot, north of Budapest near the Slovakian border.

They said an investigation is underway and "circumstances are being clarified."

Footage released by broadcaster RTL showed a car appearing to lose grip on a damp road and spinning into bystanders.

Further reports in local media suggested that one child had sustained life-threatening injuries and another child was among six people taken to hospital with minor injuries.

The 11th edition of the Esztergom Nyerges Rally also featured an exhibition of classic old cars including an iconic East German Trabant and attracted several hundred visitors.

In August 2023, 47-year-old rally pilot Csaba Nemes was killed when he hit a tree at the Veszprém Rally in western Hungary.

mf/dj (AP, AFP)