Vehicle plows into crowd in Virginia city, several hurt

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA., Aug 12 - At least one vehicle hit a crowd of people gathered in a Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday, hours after police broke up a clash between white nationalists and counter-protesters, according to witnesses, but it was not clear whether the incident was connected to the earlier melee.

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The accident involved three vehicles, and there were multiple injuries, Charlottesville city spokeswoman Miriam Dickler said in a text message.

At least four injured people were spotted at the location where the vehicle struck demonstrators, including one person who was taken away on a stretcher by paramedics. Multiple ambulances were on the scene soon after the early-afternoon incident.

Charlottesville police said in a statement on Facebook that they and Virginia State Police were at the scene of the incident in the city's downtown.

(Reporting by Brandon Shulleeta; Writing by Frank McGurty; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)