A deadly truck attack in lower Manhattan this afternoon killed eight people and injured 11 others.
8 Dead as Truck Careens Down Bike Path in Manhattan in Terror Attack
(CNN) Authorities found a note in the truck allegedly used in the New York terror attack claiming the suspect did it in the name of ISIS, a senior law enforcement official told CNN.
The note was in English, the source said.
A man in a rented flatbed pickup on Tuesday drove down a busy bicycle path near the World Trade Center, killing eight people and injuring about a dozen others, police said.
Witnesses recall hearing between five and ten shots. The NYPD later confirmed the attacker had been shot in the abdomen and taken to hospital.
The officer was praised by Bill de Blasio, the New York Mayor, while other officers said it was that quick thinking that had prevented more "carnage".
Soon half a dozen ambulances and a dozen fire truck had rushed to the area and police cordoned off the road. Two police helicopters buzzed overhead.
While details were preliminary and the investigation still underway, the mayor said the suspect appeared to have been a lone wolf and not part of a wider plot.
A motorist drove onto a busy bicycle path near the World Trade Center memorial and struck several people on Tuesday police and witnesses said
A motorist drove onto a busy bicycle path near the World Trade Center memorial and struck several people on Tuesday police and witnesses said CREDIT: AP PHOTO/BEBETO MATTHEWS
In the aftermath of the attack, shocked office workers stood at police cordons with children and parents on their way to Halloween parties.
One children's' party at a small park near the scene of the attack had to be cancelled as the area was secured by police. Dozens of children in fancy dress, many crying, were led away.
One of the mothers, Michelle Williams, said: "My kids are in complete shock. They don't understand what's happening. They have been looking forward to tonight for weeks - it's supposed to be the most fun night of the year. I don't know what I'm going to tell them. How do you explain this?"
The city's main Village Halloween Parade went ahead as planned last night - but with an extremely heavy police presence. New Yorkers refused to be cowed by the attack.
"You can't let the terrorists win," said Sam Rosenthal, who was on his way to a Halloween party. "I think New York is like London - after something like this, you have to get on and live your life without fear. Otherwise they win."
12:58am
Obama: New Yorkers are as tough as they come
12:15am
Three Belgians injured in the attack
Didier Reynders, Belgium's deputy prime minister, says three Belgians were also injured in the attack and are in the operating room.
11:58pm
Photo of the suspect
The suspect in the terror attack has been identified by US media as Sayfullo Saipov, a 29-year-old Uzbek national who lives in Florida.
Sayfullo Saipov CREDIT: @nyscanner/TWITTER
11:48pm
'Argentinians' among the victims
Argentina's Foreign Ministry confirms 'Argentine citizens died' in the New York bike path attack. It doesn't say how many.
11:42pm
A timeline of ramming attacks
The attack was the latest involving a vehicle being used to mow down a crowd of people.
11:33pm
Trump issues statement
Having responded first on Twitter, Mr Trump has issued a statement on the attack.
11:15pm
One of the victims was Belgian
Didier Reynders, the deputy prime minister of Belgium, has announced that one of the victims in tonight's terror attack was from Belgium.
11:13pm
Donald Trump: Attack carried out by sick and 'deranged person'
The US president has given his first reaction to the attack on Twitter.
9:43pm
Attacker was carrying paintball gun
More details have emerged about the attacker from the NYPD press conference.
The attacker is a 29-year-old man. He has not been named by police.
He drove onto a bike path at Houston Street and drove south until Chambers Street - around 20 blocks - hitting pedestrians and cyclists.
The driver then smashed into a school bus, injuring adults and children.
He then emerged holding a a paintball gun and pellet gun.
He was shot in the abodemen by a police offer and is now in hospital.
9:36pm
New York Mayor condemns 'cowardly act'
Bill de Blasio, the New York Mayor, has condemned the attack at the NYPD press conference.
He called it a "very painful day in our city" and a "horrible tragedy".
"This was a cowardly act of terror aimed at innocent civilians, aimed at people going about their lives," Mr Blasio said.
He praised the spirit of the city, saying: “New Yorkers do not give in in the face of these kind of actions."
9:29pm
New York Police Department press conference taking place
Eight confirmed dead, more than a dozen are injured.
The incident has been described as a "tragedy of the greatest magnitude".
A single officer who was near the incident when it happened is being praised for stopping the "carnage".
9:16pm
Eyewitness: 'There was no screaming, people were in shock'
Jamal Lewis, a 17-year-old student who witnessed the attack told the Telegraph: “I was walking down West street and heard a loud noise behind me. I saw the white pickup truck run over two cyclists and carried on. People were around their bodies, but they were dead. There was no screaming, people were in shock.”
9:11pm
Here is a map showing where the incident took place
The point marked is roughly where the white Home Depot truck crashed. It is close to the World Trade Center memorial.
There are reports that the truck had driven up to 20 blocks along a bike path before reaching this point, heading south.
9:05pm
Driver shouted 'Allahu Akbar', according to claims
The phrase, which means 'God is Great' in Arabic, was said by the suspected attacker during the incident, it has been claimed.
The reports are said to be the reason that the FBI and NYPD are now treating the incident as a terror attack.
8:49pm
Incident being treated as a terror attack
Reuters has this:
The striking of pedestrians by a vehicle in lower Manhattan on Tuesday was being treated as a terrorist attack, two U.S. government sources said.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation has joined the New York City police department in investigating the incident, the sources said.
8:45pm
Witness accounts are beginning to come in
A man who was riding in an Uber along the West Side Highway near Chambers Street said he saw several bleeding people on the ground after a truck struck several people. Another witness said the truck had also collided with a small bus and one other vehicle.
Tom Gay, a school photographer, was on Warren Street and heard people saying there was an accident. He went down to West Street and a woman came around the corner shouting, "He has a gun! He has a gun!"
Gay told Associated Press that he stuck his head around the corner and saw a slender man in a blue track suit running southbound on West Street holding a gun. He said there was a heavyset man pursuing him.
He said he heard five or six shots and the man in the tracksuit fell to the ground, gun still raised in the air. He said a man came over and kicked the gun out of his hand.
Uber driver Chen Yi said he saw a truck plow into people on a popular bike path adjacent to the West Side Highway. He said he then heard seven to eight shots and then police pointing a gun at a man kneeling on the pavement.
"I saw a lot of blood over there. A lot of people on the ground," Yi said.
His passenger, Dmitry Metlitsky, said he also saw police standing near a man who was on his knees with his hands up, and another man bleeding on the ground nearby. He said the truck had also collided with a small school bus and one other vehicle.
8:42pm
New York Police Department statement
The New York Police Department’s official Twitter account gave a “preliminary” account of what happened on Tuesday afternoon.
“Earlier a vehicle entered the West St. pedestrian/bike path a few blocks north of Chambers St,” it read.
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