A YOUNG woman who died after a van ploughed into a group of people outside King’s College in London has been pictured for the first time.
Aalia Mahomed, 20, was killed in the horror smash near Somerset House in the capital shortly before midday on Tuesday.
Aalia Mahomed was killed in the horror smash
PACops and emergency services at the scene on The Strand[/caption]
PAA man was arrested following the horror collision[/caption]
Emergency crews were called at 11.41am but Aalia was pronounced dead at the scene.
In a statement, her family said: “Aalia was a bright, kind and beautiful soul, who brought joy and laughter to everyone.
“She was a ray of sunshine in our lives, and will be deeply missed by all her family and friends.
“Her light will always live on in our memories and her smile will be our strength as we get through this difficult time.”
A 27-year-old woman was taken to hospital, where she remains in a serious condition. Her injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
A man, 23, was taken to hospital and has since been discharged.
ARREST MADE
Police arrested the driver of the van, a 26-year-old man at the scene on suspicion of causing death by careless driving.
He was further arrested whilst in custody on suspicion of drug driving offences.
He has since been bailed with conditions whilst enquiries continue.
Witness Josh, of Cadogan Tate, who was working metres from the incident, told The Sun that the van was briefly airborne before striking the woman, who appeared to be in her 20s.
Aalia was sitting with pals on a bench before tragedy struck.
Josh said: “The iron gate collapsed as the van was coming out of the service yard.
“It was still going at speed and it ended up clipping a planter before going through the air.
“It hit the girl as she was sitting on the bench with one of her mates.
“You could hear screams and people were running towards her to help. Another guy was injured by the actual gate coming down.”
Another pedestrian was left fighting for their life and was rushed to hospital with serious injuries.
A third person was also taken to hospital after suffering minor wounds.
The incident is not believed to be terror related, according to the Metropolitan Police.
Pictures from the area show a police cordon taping off the scene with multiple police and emergency vehicles in attendance.
The horror crash in the popular area took place in broad daylight as shocked students, tourists and nearby workers watched on.
King’s College campus is understood to be on lockdown with no access to students.
A witness who gave his name as Josh said he heard a “bang” and “screams” at the time of the accident.
He said the van involved had driven out of a nearby service yard and through a gate before a group of people rushed over to help the victims.
He added: “We all went over there and then obviously one of my mates, he went in there, grabbed some first aiders and came out, we tried to get people away and all that.”
A dark blue van with a smashed headlight and a dent on the front right corner remained by the police cordon on Tuesday afternoon.
The Met Police said in a statement earlier on Tuesday: “Police are on scene and dealing with a collision close to The Strand, WC2.
“Officers were called at 11:41hrs on Tuesday, 18 March following a collision involving a van and pedestrians.
“Three pedestrians suffered injuries, with a woman in her twenties sadly pronounced dead at the scene.
“Two pedestrians have been taken to hospital, one has potentially life-threatening injuries, and the other has minor injuries.
“The driver of the van, a 26-year-old man was arrested at the scene on suspicion causing death by careless driving and driving with concentration of specified controlled drug above specified limit.
“He remains in custody. Enquiries are ongoing and a crime scene is in place.
“This collision is not being treated as terrorism-related.”
Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 or post @MetCC ref CAD 2771/18MARCH.
To remain 100 per cent anonymous contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
PAPolice erected a blue tent as they continued to investigate[/caption]
X/Game HedgehogA van has ploughed into three people in Central London[/caption]
The area outside King’s College London was cordoned offX/kclquestions
Images from the scene have also shown cops put up a blue tent as the investigation continues.
The London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service were also in attendance.
One witness at the scene told LBC they heard “a few girls may have been hit”.
They said: “I’m waiting for my friends to come out, they sound pretty shaken but I don’t know what they saw.”
Another student told the outlet: “No one knew what was going on. There was lots of police tape and shouting and everyone sort of just stood there.
“We saw people lying down with people with ambulances around them.”
Ali, a PhD student at King’s College London, who did not wish to share his surname, was leaving class when he saw emergency services gathered near the scene.
The 28-year-old said he initially thought emergency services were there for a protest outside the university, until he saw ambulance workers carrying stretchers.
“I was just walking out of class… at first I was disoriented, I thought it was a protest because it usually happens, but it’s something else entirely,” he said.
“(Now knowing a woman has died) is so sad and hard to process – my thoughts go out to her family and friends.
“We walk by that crossing all the time and it’s pedestrianised, barely any vehicles pass.”
X/kclquestionsCops said the incident is not thought to be terror related[/caption]
PAParamedics arriving after the horror crash[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
