Carnival float collapses; 11 hurt

Eleven people from the Utrecht town of Cothen were injured when their carnival float collapsed on Sunday. Five people were taken to hospital, the other six sought medical treatment themselves. The injuries mainly involve broke bones, NOS reports.

The treasurer of the Cothen carnival association Brienkneuters told NOS that the victims are between 20 and 26 years old. They built the float themselves.

The float collapsed at around 5:00 p.m. on Nachtdijk at 't Goy, in the municipality of Houten. Around 20 people were on the float at the time. They were heading back to Cothen after a parade in Schalkwijk, around 12 kilometers away.

The police are investigating exactly what happened.

The parade in Schalkwijk is considered by many as an opportunity to test their carnival float for upcoming parades. Over 25 floats from Schalkwijk and its surrounds participated on Sunday. Carnival officially only starts on March 3rd, but a few years ago Schalkwijk carnival association De Platneuzen decided to hold its parade early to attract more visitors, according to the broadcaster.