Driver Attacked After Plowing Into Crowd Outside East Hollywood Nightclub

EAST HOLLYWOOD, CA — The driver who plowed into a crowd of people outside an East Hollywood nightclub, injuring at least 30 people, was attacked by bystanders following the collision, according to authorities.

The driver was later found to have been shot, according to Los Angeles police, who were searching for a suspected gunman who fled the scene.

It was not immediately clear if the driver had been shot before or after the crash or why he drove into the crowd, a Los Angeles Police Department spokesman told the Associated Press.

The crash was reported just before 2 a.m. in the 4600 block of West Santa Monica Boulevard near Vermont Avenue. According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, a line of people — the majority female — were waiting to enter a nightclub when they were struck by a Nissan Versa that also hit a taco truck and valet stand.

Victims were taken to local hospitals and trauma centers. At least seven people were critically injured, the Los Angeles Fire Department said in a statement. Six were in serious condition, 10 in fair condition, and seven people refused transport after they were treated on scene.

The driver, whose gunshot wound was found by paramedics, was taken to a local hospital. Police did not identify him or disclose his condition. The shooter was described as a man in a blue jersey with a silver revolver.

“This is under police investigation,” LAFD Fire Capt. Adam Van Gerpen said. “This will be a large investigation with the LAPD.”

Video from the scene showed firefighters placing red, yellow, and green tarps in the street to triage patients, and it showed a heavily dented car with a shattered windshield and broken headlights on the sidewalk in front of an apparent entertainment venue.

Multiple ambulances were lined up in the street.

People inside the club came out to help in the minutes before emergency crews arrived, Van Gerpen said, to help the victims.

“They were all standing in line going into a nightclub. There was a taco cart out there, so they were ... getting some food, waiting to go in. And there’s also a valet line there,” he said. “The valet podium was taken out, the taco truck was taken out and then a large number of people were impacted by the vehicle.”

The club, Vermont Hollywood, was hosting a reggae/hip hop event from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., according to its online calendar.

A fight had broken out outside of the club before the incident, according to Maria Medrano, who was working a food cart outside.

Shortly after, Medrano said, the car hit a group of people standing outside.

She said she and her husband, who were both selling hot dogs outside, narrowly escaped after the car struck their stand, crushing it.

“The car stopped once it hit the hot dog stand, it got stuck there,” Medrano told The Associated Press from the hospital. “If not, I wouldn’t be here to tell (the story).”

Medrano said she heard what appeared to be gunshots after the crash.

“Everyone started running,” she said.

The Associated Press and City News Service contributed to this report.