Zhuhai Attack Shocks the Nation: 35 Dead, 43 Injured in Suspected Vehicle Rampage

On Tuesday, Chinese authorities reported that a suspected intentional vehicle attack occurred in Zhuhai, Guangdong Province, where the 15th China International Airshow is taking place, resulting in over 70 casualties.

According to the Zhuhai Public Security Bureau, the event occurred on Tuesday at 7:48 PM inside the Zhuhai Sports Center. Authorities confirmed that 35 people died, and 43 others were hospitalized.

The police identified the driver as a 62-year-old man with the family name of Fan, who allegedly drove a small off-road vehicle into the sports center, hitting citizens who were exercising on the center’s road, and fled the scene before being apprehended by the police. After injuring himself, Fan was taken to the hospital by police, where he remains unconscious, hindering immediate investigation.

Authorities added that based on the investigation and video footage, Fan seemed to have committed this act out of dissatisfaction with the property division following his divorce.

Earlier reports from Hong Kong’s Ming Pao describe the incident as having occurred in a pedestrian-only zone about 400 meters long, frequently visited by residents for exercise and walks. Ming Pao noted that shoes, hats, and bags were scattered across the scene, and a red flag marked “Beautiful Zhuhai Trekking Team” was also present. This local community organization trekking team regularly takes elderly individuals on walking exercises.

Witnesses described the gruesome scene, with one noting that a gray off-road vehicle was repeatedly driving back and forth, hitting people and then fleeing. “Many people fell and lay still after being hit. There was a lot of blood and severed fingers on the ground,” they said.

Photos and videos of the attack quickly circulated on Chinese social media platforms, but authorities swiftly censored and deleted them. The search term “Zhuhai Sports Center” trended immediately after the incident but has since been replaced by “Zhuhai Airshow” in search results.

Ming Pao also reported claims from online users that authorities instructed party members to steer discussions in a “positive” direction, likely to prevent panic during the global spotlight on Zhuhai for the airshow. Some sources suggest that the possibility of a “social retaliation incident” with minimal risk cannot be ruled out, hinting that external forces might have intentionally caused the chaos.