The terror attack in Barcelona has already claimed the lives of at least 13 people.
A further 50 have been injured, including three confirmed Australians.
The attack saw a van ploughing into a crowd of pedestrians on Barcelona’s most famous street in the popular tourist area of Las Ramblas.
Aussie eyewitnesses have recounted the horror of being caught up in the attack.
Young Perth travellers Jesse Montile and his girlfriend spoke to 7 News, revealing they’d just got off the plane and were looking for their Airbnb.
“I saw police running down roads and streets and alleyways with guns including on motorbikes and big vans while wearing bullet proof vests,” Mr Montile told 7 News. “I got pulled into shops and had to hide in a down stairs bunker type thing.”
Australian tourist Susan McLean told Channel Nine she was 100 metres from the scene:
“All of a sudden there was this tidal wave of people running from both Placa de Catalunya and Las Ramblas towards us screaming, crying and with absolute terror etched on their faces,” she told Channel Nine.
“Initially we couldn’t hear anything other than all these people running towards us. Several of them were calling ‘gun, gun’, so first of all we thought someone had been shot. Then they just kept sort of – it was all in Spanish. It was very difficult to understand but they were sort of pushing us into shops.”
She was separated from her husband in the panic, and said the scene was reminiscent of Melbourne’s Bourke Street tragedy.
“That was quite scary because I wasn’t sure where he was but the shopkeepers were great. They pulled everyone inside and put the shutters down,” she said.
“My first reaction was the Bourke Street [rampage], because that is what it reminded me of, the vision of people fleeing in just such terror.”
Other witnesses have described a scene of chaos and panic as the vehicle zigzagged along the pedestrian area, mowing down people and sending others fleeing for cover.
Ethan Spidey, 25, told The Independent there was a “stampede” as tourists and locals sprinted away from the scene of the attack.
“I was with my boyfriend just about to cross Las Ramblas and all of a sudden there was an immediate stampede and police shouting at people to run,” he said.
“I saw a young child knocked over and picked them up but everyone was just running.”
“There was a stampede in the streets alongside Las Ramblas as everyone tried to run away. People were running into shops and taking refuge in cafes. There was a lot of screaming.”
Eyewitnesses have described a scene of chaos, panic and terror.
Emergency services are urging people to avoid the popular tourist area.
One witness told Sky News: “It was quite terrifying. All of a sudden scores of people ran towards us, hysterical, children hysterical… first of all they said someone had been shot.”
She added: “We really had no idea what was going on other than that we needed to get ourselves out of there very quickly… there was just hundreds of people running away very quickly.”
Another said: “We were just told to run, it must have been quite close because… there was an immediate stampede to run away. We were just a minute away from it.”
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop has confirmed three Australians are injured, a NSW woman is in hospital in a serious but stable condition and two young men from Melbourne are also injured.
“They’re in direct contact with consular staff. They have advised they were directly affected,” Bishop said.
She said consular officials would be at the hospital to assist the woman “as soon as possible.”
Police have identified Driss Oukabir as the man who allegedly rented the van used in the incident. It’s unclear if he was involved in the attack.
ISIS has claimed responsibility for the attack via its Amaq agency.
More as we get it.
