Three young children and a teenager were killed when a car barreled through a building used for an after-school camp in central Illinois, but authorities said Tuesday that the crash that sent six other children to the hospital was likely not a targeted attack.
The car left a road, crossed a field and smashed into the side of the building in the small city of Chatham on Monday afternoon, Illinois State Police said in a statement. It traveled through the building, striking numerous people before exiting the other side.
Police said two 7-year-olds, an 8-year-old and an 18-year-old were killed. Six more children were taken to hospitals and one remained in critical condition.
The driver, who was not injured, was taken to a hospital for evaluation and police said toxicology reports were pending. The driver, a 44-year-old woman, was not in custody on Tuesday morning. State police declined to offer further details about the driver, saying the crash remains under investigation.
“This does not appear to be a targeted attack,” state police said in a statement.
The deadly crash comes days after a car plowed through a crowded street during a Filipino heritage festival in Vancouver, British Columbia, killing 11 people. Similar vehicle ramming events have taken place worldwide in recent years, some inspired by extremist politics or blamed on mental illness.
Chatham, a community of 15,000 people, is about 12 miles (19 kilometers) from the state capital of Springfield. Several prayer services were scheduled for Tuesday and a middle school offered counseling.
The struck building houses Youth Needing Other Things Outdoors, which holds after-school programs and summer camps geared toward the outdoors, according to its website.
“I cannot gather the words to express much of anything that will make sense in print. However, I do know that our families who suffered loss and injury today, are hurting very, very badly,” YNOT Outdoors Founder Jamie Loftus said in a social media post on Monday. “They are friends and their kids are like our kids.”
Loftus said security camera footage showed a vehicle that left the road “a substantial distance” away and sped across the field toward the building.
“With no apparent attempt to alter its direction,” it crossed a road, sidewalk and into YNOT’s parking lot, then into the building, Loftus said. After passing through the building, the vehicle crossed a gravel road and crashed into a power pole and ballfield fence.
Video from the scene showed an area behind the building cordoned off with yellow tape and a large hole in the side of the building.
“I am horrified and deeply saddened by the deaths of children and numerous injuries in Chatham this afternoon,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement Monday. “My heart is heavy for these families and the unimaginable grief they’re experiencing – something that no parent should ever have to endure.”
He said his office was monitoring the situation and was ready to lend support.
Chatham Police Department asked for prayers.
“A terrible tragedy has occurred here that has affected all of us,” the department said in a Facebook post.
By Monday night, some members of the community and beyond had changed their Facebook profile photos to an image of a red ribbon and the words “Chatham Strong.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.