Six dead after off-duty Chilean navy member crashes into market

A white car driven by an off-duty Chilean navy member tore into Feria Caupolicán in Viña del Mar on Sunday morning, killing six people in a crash that ripped through a crowded open-air market packed with merchants and customers. The vehicle was moving along avenida Alessandri when it lost control, mounted the sidewalk and entered the stalls around 08:30 a.m.

Police prefect Jorge Guaita said the driver told investigators he did not remember anything. He said witness statements indicated the vehicle had been traveling in the correct direction but at high speed before it left the roadway, and investigators were still working to determine whether speed, a collision or another factor caused the crash. The driver tested negative on a breathalyzer and was the only person detained in connection with the incident.

Gustavo Fricke Hospital said five injured people were admitted with traumatic injuries that were not considered life-threatening, including two babies, and two others were discharged. One of the dead was a civilian employee of the Chilean navy. The navy said it was cooperating with authorities to establish exactly what happened.

Feria Caupolicán operates every Thursday and Sunday, a schedule that made the market especially crowded when the car went out of control. Regional presidential delegate Manuel Millones urged the municipality to reorder the market after the tragedy, while Viña del Mar mayor Macarena Ripamonti decreed three days of communal mourning from Monday, July 13, through Wednesday, July 15. The municipality also placed its surveillance-camera footage at the disposal of investigators and said it would pursue legal action.

Chilean President José Antonio Kast said state institutions were working to help the victims and establish responsibility. The detained servicemember was scheduled to face a detention hearing on Monday, as police and prosecutors continued to examine whether the crash reflected reckless driving, a collision or another failure in one of the city’s busiest public spaces.