{"id":6500,"date":"2026-07-12T13:34:43","date_gmt":"2026-07-12T20:34:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/news\/7735866\/several-people-killed-in-chile-after-car-driven-by-navy-officer-crashes-into-an-open-air-market\/"},"modified":"2026-07-12T15:00:14","modified_gmt":"2026-07-12T22:00:14","slug":"several-people-killed-in-chile-after-car-driven-by-navy-officer-crashes-into-an-open-air-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6500\/several-people-killed-in-chile-after-car-driven-by-navy-officer-crashes-into-an-open-air-market\/","title":{"rendered":"Several people killed in Chile after car driven by navy officer crashes into an open-air market"},"content":{"rendered":"

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) \u2014 An off-duty member of the Chilean navy driving a private vehicle crashed into an open-air market in the coastal city of Vina del Mar<\/a> Sunday, killing several people, the navy said in a statement.<\/p>\n

Footage circulating on social media from a residential security camera appears to capture the moment the car plunges into the stalls, while other videos show the driver being rushed to a nearby police car, as angry bystanders run after him shouting.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe accident resulted in the deaths of several people and left others with injuries of varying severity,\u201d the navy said, adding that it was cooperating with authorities to establish the circumstances surrounding the crash. <\/p>\n

The navy statement did not provide an exact number of fatalities, but local media reported at least six deaths. <\/p>\n

Officials at Gustavo Fricke Hospital said five injured people \u2014 including two babies \u2014 were admitted with various traumatic injuries that were not in life-threatening. Police, firefighters and paramedics treated numerous people at the scene. Two other injured people were discharged.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this stage of the evaluation, they are stable and out of life-threatening danger, but of course they are still awaiting the completion of all the examinations required in these cases,\u201d Denise Cataldo, the hospital\u2019s deputy director, said.<\/p>\n

The off-duty member of the navy – the only person detained in connection with the incident – tested negative in a breathalyzer test, Interior Undersecretary M\u00e1ximo Pavez said.<\/p>\n

Col. Jorge Guaita, police prefect for Vina del Mar, told reporters the driver says he doesn\u2019t remember anything and that the cause for the incident is yet to be determined.<\/p>\n

\u201cWitness statements from people who saw the crash indicate that the vehicle was traveling in the correct direction of traffic, at high speed,\u201d Guaita said, adding that when the vehicle mounted the sidewalk, it spun around.<\/p>\n

\u201cFortunately, the bus stop brought it to a halt. Otherwise, it might have continued forward and caused even more damage,\u201d Guaita added.<\/p>\n

Witnesses told local media the driver may have lost control of the vehicle after a collision.<\/p>\n

Chilean<\/a> President Jos\u00e9 Antonio Kast<\/a> said on X that the incident had plunged \u201cthe entire country in mourning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAll state institutions are working to assist those affected and to establish with complete clarity the responsibilities for this painful event,\u201d Kast said.<\/p>\n

The Caupolican market is held every Thursday and Sunday in the upper part of Vina del Mar. It comprises more than 1,000 stalls, in addition to informal vendors in the surrounding area, and is typically visited by large crowds.<\/p>\n

___<\/p>\n

Follow AP\u2019s coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https:\/\/apnews.com\/hub\/latin-america<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) \u2014 An off-duty member of the Chilean navy driving a private vehicle crashed into an open-air market in the coastal city of Vina del Mar Sunday, killing several people, the navy said in a statement. Footage circulating on social media from a residential security camera appears to capture the moment the car […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":521,"featured_media":6501,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"guid":"a366a279-0b8b-408a-aec7-23f2ad6cc033","source":"The Associated Press","byline":"","published":"2026-07-12 13:34:43","updated":"2026-07-12 14:54:26","_infotelid":"","_prepressid":"","_multisite_post_sync":"","_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1303,1304],"tags":[],"region":[],"class_list":["post-6500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","category-world"],"blocksy_meta":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6500\/several-people-killed-in-chile-after-car-driven-by-navy-officer-crashes-into-an-open-air-market\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Several people killed in Chile after car driven by navy officer crashes into an open-air market","url":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6500\/several-people-killed-in-chile-after-car-driven-by-navy-officer-crashes-into-an-open-air-market\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/news\/6500\/several-people-killed-in-chile-after-car-driven-by-navy-officer-crashes-into-an-open-air-market\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-7ec5d45b5f83f4bb05c91f11b4fdf56a2d54cf0aed6b95e6281a8b9a93ee1ed6.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/infonews.ca\/inwheels\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/inwheels-7ec5d45b5f83f4bb05c91f11b4fdf56a2d54cf0aed6b95e6281a8b9a93ee1ed6.jpg"},"articleSection":"International","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Associated Press"}],"creator":["The Associated Press"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"iNwheels","logo":""},"keywords":[],"dateCreated":"2026-07-12T20:34:43Z","datePublished":"2026-07-12T20:34:43Z","dateModified":"2026-07-12T22:00:14Z"},"rendered":"