Prayers For Hit-And-Run Dead And Injured.

A special church service will be held today for the 14 victims of a series of hit-and-run attacks in Cardiff, which left a mother of three dead and 13 others injured.

Karina Menzies, 32, was killed after she was knocked down during one of the collisions involving a white van outside a fire station in the Ely area of the city on Friday.

Thirteen others were injured in the crashes on the streets of the Welsh capital. Two of the injured adults are in a critical condition and five children are also receiving treatment.

The service, at Church of the Resurrection on Grand Avenue, will take place from 5pm.

Adam and Annie Lewis were walking with their daughter when they were hit

Meanwhile, detectives were last night granted a further 36 hours to question a 31-year-old man on suspicion of murder.

Officers are also appealing for information about a mystery car seen driving on the wrong side of the road shortly before the crashes.

The black Renault Clio was seen on Western Avenue, not far from Cowbridge Road West, where one crash happened. There were no full registration details for the Clio but officers said it carried an 05 plate.

CCTV images show the moment a white van swerved across four lanes of traffic, mounted the kerb and crashed into Adam and Annie Lewis and their two-year-old daughter, Amelia-May.

Ms Menzies, 32, was killed on Friday after being knocked down

Amelia-May's grandmother, Maureen Lewis, said the toddler was catapulted from her pushchair into the air and suffered injuries to her face. She said Annie suffered a broken leg.

Detective Superintendent Paul Hurley confirmed reports that the suspect left his vehicle and physically assaulted people between the crashes and also carried a weapon.

It is believed the weapon was a steering wheel lock.

The officer said: "We are aware the suspect assaulted people outside his vehicle," and he added police were "looking to identify and recover" the weapon.

Father Adam Lewis (top), mother Annie (right) and two-year-old Amelia-May

He said no firearm was involved and there was no suggestion anyone had been stabbed.

According to unconfirmed reports, police are also investigating whether the driver was involved in a domestic incident before the rampage.

The horrific events began when police received calls about an incident in Crossways Road in Ely at 3.30pm.

This was soon followed by other reports of hit-and-run collisions in several locations in the west of the city, including Grand Avenue, Cowbridge Road West and the Leckwith Retail Park.

Police were called to five locations in Cardiff

Seventy officers are working on the investigation.

Floral tributes were laid at the scene where Ms Menzies was killed.

Among those paying their respects was local Labour MP Kevin Brennan.

He said: "Karina was a well-liked mother who had three children. One of her children is disabled and is currently on a dream holiday in Florida."

 

The white van pictured after being stopped by police

Ely sub-postmaster Shady Taha, 29, had just served two girls aged about 10 and a woman in her mid-20s moments before one of the hit-and-runs in Grand Avenue, immediately outside a row of shops.

He said: "All of a sudden I heard a bang. I looked out and across the road one girl was on the floor and the other girl was screaming. I heard a van speed off but I did not see it."

Lynda Paterson, who lives in Cowbridge Road West, described the scene outside her house as chaotic.

"I was going to pick my children up from school and I could see there were police and someone was lying on the floor, on the pavement."

Other eyewitnesses said pedestrians were deliberately targeted by someone driving a white van.

The crime scenes included Ely fire station, an area near the Merrie Harrier pub in Llandough on the outskirts of Cardiff, where the suspect was arrested, and Leckwith Retail Park - next to the Cardiff City Stadium.

 

Ms Menzies' brother, Craig Menzies, told Radio 5 Live that she died trying to save the lives of her children.

Describing the moment the van careered towards them, he said: "He went through the traffic, aimed for them and then just hit them head on.

"She just screamed and threw them out of the way as much as she could. He still clipped them but she took it head-on. She saved their lives."

He told the programme it was "a waste of a life".

He added: "She was the world to me. She was my best friend. She was a lively, bubbly person. There's just so many good things you could say about her.

"We'll all be lost without her."