Car mounts pavement and ploughs into parents and children outside school

Paramedics were called to George Street, Hemel Hempstead at 3.28pm after reports of a 4X4 mounting the pavement and hitting several pedestrians.

A spokesman for Herts Police said initial reports on their log say three people were hit, one of them believed to be a child.

The incident happened when the area was busy with parents collecting their children from George Street Primary School.

A witness, who saw the incident happen, said the grey Honda CRV almost hit her and her two children who were walking past just moments before.

She said: “The 4x4 just appeared from no where then I heard screams and the car horn before the car ended up in a hedge next to the pavement.

“The pavement was very crowded as a car had parked on the pavement, stopping anyone with pushchairs from walking through.

“I saw the accident at a distance but wasn’t close enough to say if anyone was hurt for certain or why exactly it happened.

“A friend of mine called 999 and waited until the police arrived, and they said apparently a child had been left covered in bruises where it had been pushed out the way by the car.

“I’m still in shock and shaking. If it had been a moment before, it would have got us.”

Parking is a common problem on the narrow street, with the witness saying it has become a daily issue which has been raised in the school newsletter.

After initial fears, a spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service said: “After paramedics assessed the people involved, they found no one was injured or required hospital treatment.”

At this stage it is not known what caused the car to mount the pavement.