Nine people were killed when a car struck pedestrians near a busy intersection in central Seoul on Monday, authorities said.
Four other people were injured in the incident outside City Hall, but their injuries were not life-threatening, fire department official Kim Chun-soo said.
Local reports said the driver of the car claimed he lost control when it suddenly accelerated. Kim Seong-hak, a public security official in central Seoul's Jung-gu district, said authorities could not immediately confirm the reports, adding that police were investigating the driver.
Authorities also said they were investigating whether the driver was intoxicated or under the influence of drugs.