One person was killed and 17 others were injured when a car plowed into a crowd at a community event Saturday in Berwick, Pa., state police he said. Although police did not specify the incident or the location of the crash, local media reported that the event was a fundraiser for the victims of the fire that killed 10 people. The bar hosting the event, the Department of Toxicology, posted a statement on Facebook saying it would be closed until further notice: “Today was an absolute tragedy. Please respect our privacy as we grieve and try to process the events that occurred. Thanks.” Responding to reports of a vehicle driving through a crowd, state troopers and local officers arrived at the scene at approximately 6:15 p.m. to find several wounded and one dead, Trooper Anthony Petroski told reporters. A short time later, state police received a call that a man had physically assaulted a woman in nearby Nescopeck, the small town where the house fire broke out on Aug. 5, killing seven adults and three children. Once on the scene, police took into custody a man they said was the suspect in both of Saturday’s incidents. The woman was dead, Petroski said. A firefighter responded to a fire that killed 10. It was his family. Police have not identified the suspect or the victims. Geisinger Medical Center in Danville said Saturday night it was treating 12 patients. Another patient is being treated at Geisinger Bloomsburg Hospital and two patients are being treated at Geisinger Wyoming Valley Medical Center. Photos from inside the bar showed personal belongings strewn on the ground near tents and tables set up for the day’s festivities. Employees of radio station 98.5 KRZ were at the event. On Saturday night, the station tweeted that the “tragedy” had occurred. “Details are still sketchy, but there are victims, including children. Pray for our neighbors!’ the station wrote on Twitter.
