84 Dead in Nice, France Attack
- By Sydny Shepard
- Jul 15, 2016
Crowds of people gathered at the Promenade des Anglais in Nice, France as fireworks shot off in celebration of Bastille Day, the French National Holiday. As the fireworks ended and groups of people started to disperse, a large white truck began driving straight into the crowd.
84 people died and at least a 100 more were injured when the truck drove through barriers and into crowds in the waterfront area. The driver was able to travel 2 kilometers, or about a mile, before police shot and killed him. (The map below shows the length of road the suspect drove during the attack.)
Authorities say that before the suspect plowed into the crowd; he used a gun to spray bullets out in front of the vehicle.
French police found the truck to be stocked with arms and explosives. They believe the suspect had the intent of detonating the truck to cause more casualties.
The driver of the truck has been identified as Mohamad Lahouaiej Bouhel, a 31-year-old French-Tunisian and resident of Nice. Authorities have not confirmed if the attack was religiously motivated.
This attack comes just months after the deadly Paris attacks in November, where 130 people were killed in different locations around the city. The country was just coming off of a 6 month period of heightened security as the country mourned those lost in the Paris attack and was vigilant in keeping attacks away from the Euro 2016 that just ended.
French President Francois Hollande said he will be submitting a bill to extend the state of emergency due to the attack in Nice.
About the Author
Sydny Shepard is the Executive Editor of Campus Security & Life Safety.