DALTON, Ga. — Seven people were hit by a truck after a driver lost control during a car auction in Dalton on Friday, the city said in a Facebook post.
The City of Dalton said three people were rushed to hospital following the crash during the event at the Dalton Convention Center.
Bruce Frazier, the communications director for the city, said the incident happened just before 2 p.m. A driver was maneuvering a restored pickup truck to the front of the auction area to put it up for bidding. Somehow, the driver lost control of it, Frazier said.
"There were people sitting and standing in that area and unfortunately there were some people hit by the car," Frazier said.
Due to the nature of the event, the event was staffed with extra police officers and emergency personnel on site, which Frazier said assisted with the prompt medical response.
"It was very fortunate. They were able to get to the person most seriously injured within seconds," he said.
Frazier added an officer had to use a tourniquet on one of the people hit. Two of the people hurt were taken to Hamilton Medical Center in Dalton. The person with the most serious injuries was taken to Erlanger in Chattanooga, according to Frazier.
The other four individuals did not need an ambulance and some refused medical care, Frazier said.
"Everybody in there was shaken up," he said. "I'm certain the people that were hurt are feeling very lucky it wasn't more serious than what it was."
The city did not release the driver's name or the victims who were hit by the car. They also did not say if any charges were going to be made against the driver.
Officials said the "Georgia Mountain Moonshine Cruiz-In" car show would reopen Saturday as scheduled. The city said the downtown concert series performance at Burr Park on Friday would go on as planned, but the car parade is canceled.