A normal morning at an Iowa Walmart took a tragic turn yesterday, after a pickup truck crashed through the front door of the store, killing three people in the store and injuring two others.
According to the Des Moines Register , witnesses claim that the Ford F-150 was traveling so fast that it blew through a concrete barrier that had been placed in front of the store to prevent this sort of crash.
Before victims were officially identified, a cashier told reporters that two of the people killed in the crash were employees at the store in Pella, a city of approximately 10,000 people located 40 miles east of Des Moines. “We’re a small town, the cashier who shared that information told the Register. “We’ll come together and get through this. That’s what we do.”
A spokesman for Walmart said that the company was “heartbroken by what appears to be a tragic accident.”
While details still haven’t all been released, the truck was reportedly driven by an elderly male, and police say that he didn’t appear to have driven into the store entrance intentionally.
An employee of a neighboring store says that police initially entered the store with guns drawn, presumably because they were unsure at the time about whether the driver had meant any further harm.
“Originally, I thought bomb threat or terroristic threat or something,” the Sally Beauty employee said, since she hadn’t seen or heard the truck crash into the entrance.
The town held a prayer vigil yesterday evening, where employees and town residents gathered to honor the still-unidentified dead and injured, including the driver of the truck.
by Laura Northrup via Consumerist
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