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COPACABANA CRASH

Where is Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro and what happened when a car ploughed into tourists?

A motorist is believed to have had an epileptic fit at the wheel on January 18

A CAR ploughed into pedestrians on a crowded promenade near a famous beach in Rio.

A baby died and multiple people were injured - what's the latest on the crash?

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Where is Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro?

It is a 2.5 mile long beach in the southern part of the city of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

It is one of the most famous beaches in the world.

The district was traditionally called Sacopenapa, which means "the way of the socos [a kind of bird]" in the Tupi language.

It was renamed after a chapel was built holding a replica of the Virgen de Copacabana - the patron saint of Brazil.

There are historic forts at both ends of the beach and along the promenade there are countless bars, restaurants and clubs.

The promenade is 4km long and was rebuilt in 1970.

It has a black and white Portuguese pavement design, which has been used since the 1930s.

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What happened when a car hit pedestrians?

A motorist is believed to have had an epileptic fit at the wheel on January 18.

The car went onto the promenade at collided with several pedestrians.

Police at the scene ruled out a terror attack and said the vehicle was not going at high speed, because the traffic on the main Atlantic Avenue was busy.

The driver was arrested and taken to a police station nearby.

The Foreign Office said the morning after the crash that it was too early to know if Brits were involved.

What happened to the people injured?

An eight-month-old baby died and 15 people were injured in the collision.

Brazilian media reported that a woman was in a critical condition in hospital, while two other children were rushed to the emergency department in a serious state.

Three men, three women and a two-year-old boy were sent to the Souza Aguiar Hospital, it was reported.

Graphic mobile phone footage showed bystanders tending to the wounded.

The injured were being treated at Rio's Miguel Couto hospital.

Scene on Brazil's Copacabana Beach after 'car ploughs into tourist packed promenade'
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