Irish person among 19 injured in Melbourne car attack

Department of Foreign Affairs providing consular assistance to Flinders Street casualty

Melbourne car attack: the crashed vehicle near Flinders Street Station, in Melbourne. Photograph: Luis Ascui/Reuters
Melbourne car attack: the crashed vehicle near Flinders Street Station, in Melbourne. Photograph: Luis Ascui/Reuters

One Irish person was among the 19 people injured when a car mounted a pavement and hit pedestrians in Melbourne today, the Department of Foreign Affairs has confirmed.

The incident occurred outside the busy Flinders Street train station, in the centre of the Australian city, at 4.30pm local time (5.30am Irish time). Some of the injured are said to be in a serious condition.

The department, which is providing consular assistance, said it has no further details about the person’s condition or identity.

Police in Melbourne have arrested the 32-year-old driver of the car and a 24-year-old man who was holding a bag of knives while filming the rampage. Investigators said they have not yet established any relationship between the two men, and the incident is not at this point being linked to international terrorism.