Glimpse of the incident© AFP
A Colombian girl celebrating her 10th birthday was among three people crushed to death at a monster truck display when a vehicle veered out of control and plowed into spectators, authorities said Monday. Hellen Velarde was attending Sunday’s exhibition in the southwestern city of Popayan as a birthday gift when she was crushed by the truck in an incident that caused widespread anger. A second girl and a young woman were also killed, local media reported. Images circulating on social media showed the truck performing a wheelie before swerving off the track and crashing into the barriers separating the public from the track.
Watch the video of the accident:
Woman loses control of a monster truck, leaving at least 37 injured in Colombia pic.twitter.com/s9g8Sacfl9
— TaraBull (@TaraBull) May 4, 2026
Momento precisos en el que un Monster Truck en Colombia pierde el control y se va contra el público en Popayán, hasta el momento se reportan 3 víctima fatales, entre ellos una menor de edad, y 37 heridos. pic.twitter.com/TZHyf96esU
— Marco A.Tlatelpa (@MarcoATlatelpa) May 4, 2026
Chaos erupted as spectators attempted to get out of harm’s way.
Over 40 people were injured, some seriously, according to the local fire department.
Local media said several children were among the injured.
Hellen’s grandfather Miller Velarde said the event had “practically no safety measures,” which he called a “crime.”
Another of his grandchildren is in intensive care after undergoing surgery for a head injury.
Popayan Mayor Juan Carlos Munoz ordered an investigation into the disaster, saying it “should never have happened.”
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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