MARINA DI PIETRASANTA - A car drove into a crowded beach, causing panic amongst holiday-goers. Some, screaming, feared it was a terrorist attack, in light of the recent events in Spain. The scene looked almost identical to that of a few hours earlier on Barcelona’s Las Ramblas, but it was in fact a drunk French tourist who was soon stopped by local police. 

 The incident, which happened on Sunday afternoon in Marina di Pietrasanta, in the province of Lucca, in Italian tourist hotspot, Tuscany, fortunately left nobody injured. The 37 year old French tourist, resident in Manchester, UK, drove at 90km an hour in a rented dark Kia car straight on the sand, on the path that led to Focette beach, well-known in the area. Were it not for a lucky coincidence, he could have easily harmed several people on the full beach.

 The police reacted immediately. The tourist, who was in the car with a friend, had his license taken off him and the car was seized. Both tourists were in the Versilia Riviera resort for the day but had rented an apartment in Pisa. The Italian Coast Guard and the State Police were also present. It is unclear whether the driver had invaded the area by mistake or if he thought he could access the beach with the car. Towing trucks had to be called to remove the car from the area. 

vk