COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — A race car veered off the track during a competition in Sri Lanka on Sunday and rammed into a crowd of spectators and race officials, killing seven people and injuring 20 others, officials said.
Thousands of spectators looked on as the mishap took place during a race in the town of Diyatalawa in the tea-growing central hills, about 180 kilometers (110 miles) east of the capital Colombo.
It wasn't immediately clear what caused the mishap.
Police spokesman Nihal Thalduwa said one of the cars veered off the track and crashed into spectators and officials of the event. Seven people, including four officials, were killed and another 20 were being treated at a hospital, said Thalduwa. He said three of the injured were in critical condition.
Thalduwa said police have launched an investigation into the accident, which was the 17th out of 24 events scheduled. The race was suspended after the accident.
About 45,000 spectators had gathered at the race circuit at a Sri Lankan military academy. The event was organized by the Sri Lankan army and Sri Lanka Automobile Sports.
People attend to the injured after a racing car crashed into the spectators during the Fox Hill Supercross, a motor racing event organized by the Sri Lanka's army, in Diyatalawa, Sri Lanka, Sunday, April 21, 2024. (AP Photo/STR)
People gather around a car that had crashed into the spectators during the Fox Hill Supercross, a motor racing event organized by the Sri Lanka's army, in Diyatalawa, Sri Lanka, Sunday, April 21, 2024. (AP Photo/STR)
TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy on Friday set a July primary and a September general election to fill the Newark-based U.S. House seat that opened after Rep. Donald Payne Jr.'s recent death.
Murphy signed a writ of election, required under state law. The July 16 primary will be about a month after the state's regularly scheduled June 4 contest, followed by the general election Sept. 18.
The special election will determine who serves out the remainder of Payne's term, which ends Jan. 3, 2025, while the regular election process held in parallel will be for who fills the seat after that.
It's not yet clear who will be running in the heavily Democratic and majority-Black district, which is unlikely to flip as registered Republicans are outnumbered by more than 6 to 1.
Payne had already filed paperwork to run for reelection this year and is set to appear uncontested on the ballot for the regular June 4 primary. Should he win the nomination, Democratic Party committee members in his district could choose a replacement to run in the November general election.
Payne, who died April 24 of a heart attack connected to complications from diabetes, served in the House since 2012.
He succeeded his father, Donald Milford Payne, who held the seat for two decades and also died while he was a sitting congressman.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy speaks during the Celebration of the Life of Donald M. Payne, Jr. at Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, NJ on Thursday, May 2, 2024. (Ed Murray/NJ Advance Media via AP)
FILE - Donald Payne Jr. stands during the funeral of his father, New Jersey Congressman Donald Payne, in Newark, N.J., March 13, 2012. Payne Jr. of New Jersey died Wednesday, April 24, 2024, officials said, after suffering a heart attack earlier this month that had left him hospitalized. He was 65. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez, File)
FILE - Rep. Donald Payne Jr., D-N.J., poses for a ceremonial photo in the Rayburn Room of the Capitol after the new 113th Congress convened, Jan. 3, 2013, in Washington. Payne Jr. of New Jersey died Wednesday, April 24, 2024, officials said, after suffering a heart attack earlier this month that had left him hospitalized. He was 65. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
