A 35-year-old man injured multiple people at a bike race in Arizona on Saturday after striking them with a pickup truck and fleeing before being shot by police.
According to the Show Low Police Department, a man in a Super Duty Ford truck hit several bicyclists at Bike the Bluff, an annual event, then drove away. Police shot the driver while attempting to stop him, the department said in a statement.
Four victims are currently in critical condition, and two are in critical but stable condition at Summit Healthcare, Grace Payne, a public information officer with the city of Show Low, told BuzzFeed News. One other victim was airlifted to Scottsdale Osborn Hospital and is in critical but stable condition.
Police said two or three other victims transported themselves to the hospital and are stable.
The driver, who police said is a white man, is also in critical but stable condition.
Bike the Bluff is a bicycle race that has taken place every year since 2008 and is meant for cyclists of all ages and abilities, according to its handbook.
The race this year began at 6:45 a.m. Police said the incident happened around 7:25 a.m. at a location about 1.2 miles from the starting line.
It's unclear how many people in total were struck by the driver. Payne said that all the victims were participants in the race and that officials do not yet know how old the victims are.
The race organizer, Jeffrey Frost, declined to comment.
Kristine Sleighter, a Show Low Police Department spokesperson, directed BuzzFeed News to the department's Facebook page.
"Our community is shocked at this incident and our hearts and prayers are with the injured and their families," Sleighter said in a statement.
Police Sgt. Brandon Clark told White Mountain Independent, a local news outlet, that the driver was eastbound but moved into the opposite lane and struck the cyclists.
"For whatever reason, he crossed over the lines. There was a group of riders that we are guessing were about 40 to 50 that were heading westbound in the number two, or the curb lane," Clark told White Mountain Independent. "He ended up striking several of the riders in that group."
Payne said participants who were farther along on the course continued on the race following the incident.
"The distance between racers was quite scattered, so those who were past that point were allowed to continue riding the race course," she said.