 |
Diana hurt, beau killed in crash
August 30, 1997
Web posted at: 11:15 p.m. EDT (0315 GMT)In this story:
- Report: Princess suffered concussion
- Witnesses heard crash
- Diana, Fayed dined earlier in evening
- Related stories and sites
PARIS (CNN) -- Britain's Princess Diana was seriously injured and her companion and Harrod's heir Dodi Fayed was killed Sunday in a Paris car crash, police said.
Diana was at a Paris hospital with a concussion, a broken arm and a serious injury to her thigh, Radio France Info reported.
The car's chauffeur also was killed in the crash, police told news services.
The Princess of Wales was taken to Paris' Salpetriere hospital for emergency treatment. Police said Diana was in the intensive care unit of the eastern Paris hospital, which specializes in emergency cases.
A fourth person in the car, one of the princess' bodyguards, was seriously injured and freed from the wreckage, police said.
The crash occurred shortly after midnight in a tunnel along the Seine River at the Pont de l'Alma bridge in the capital's 8th district while paparazzi on at least one motorcycle were following her car, police said.
Witnesses heard crash
An American witness, Mike Walker, told CNN the car in which Diana was traveling "looked like it hit the wall."
Two other Americans visiting Paris heard the crash and ran to the scene. Joanna Luz and Tom Richardson, both of San Diego, told CNN they were walking along the Seine when they heard a bang and squealing tires under the bridge.
They described the car as a dark blue Mercedes, with the passenger side airbag deployed, facing oncoming traffic.
They also said they believed at least one cameraman was following the car, saying that what appeared to be a professional photographer was on the scene less than 15 seconds after the crash.
"His equipment was very professional -- his camera was a foot and a half tall," Luz said. "It definitely was not a tourist camera."
Early calls to British newspapers found none with reporters assigned to follow Diana in Paris. However, CNN Paris Bureau Chief Jim Bittermann said that would not be unusual; the British papers often rely on freelancers who are willing to go to great lengths to get an exclusive photograph of the princess.
Bittermann said the highway, one of several high-speed arteries into the heart of Paris, typically has very little traffic around midnight Saturday.
There is no barrier between incoming and outgoing traffic, Bittermann said; if a car went out of control it would be nearly certain to swerve into oncoming traffic.
The crash trapped several people in a pileup, France Info radio reported. Police cars and vans with flashing lights filled the site outside the tunnel and officers blocked off the area.
The car was apparently traveling without an escort.
Diana, Fayed dined earlier in evening
Reports said that Diana, 36, and Fayed, 42, were dining at the Ritz Hotel in Paris before the accident. Fayed's family owns the Ritz Hotel chain; the car's chauffeur was also reported to be a Ritz employee.
Diana, whose divorce from Britain's Prince Charles became official last year, had been on vacation in the south of France with Fayed last week. It was believed to be her third romantic vacation with Fayed.
Speculation surrounding Diana and the Egyptian millionaire has been rampant ever since she was spotted embracing Fayed on a Mediterranean cruise earlier this month.
Fayed and the princess are said to have met about 10 years ago, when he played polo against Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne.
Films that Fayed has produced or co-produced include the 1981 Oscar-winning "Chariots of Fire," "The World According to Garp," "F/X" and "Hook."
Reportedly a multi-millionaire, Fayed had homes in London, New York, Los Angeles and Switzerland as well as a garage full of luxury cars. His 1994 marriage lasted just eight months.
Fayed's father, self-made billionaire Mohamed Al-Fayed, owns London's fabled Harrod's department store, the Hotel Ritz in Paris and has 11 homes around the world.
Mohamed Al-Fayed had been friendly with Diana's father, the late Lord Spencer.
Diana and Charles' two sons, Princes William and Harry, are believed to be vacationing with Charles at the royal family's Scottish home at Balmoral.
Diana was due back in Britain on Sunday and had been expected to see her sons at her London home at Kensington Palace.
Paris Bureau Chief Jim Bittermann, Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
- Princess Diana Injured - message board
Related story
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
- The Diana Years - People Magazine
- British Monarchy Official Site - Diana Information
- (Unauthorized) Princess Diana Page
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
|
Sound off on our message boards
You said it... |
|
© 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.