Another eyewitness, Gianni Varceha, told the BBC he was listening to Christmas music at the market with his girlfriend’s family when “suddenly there was a crash and the sound of broken glass”.
“People started to panic,” he said. “I saw a car and people on the floor, people bleeding. There were also children.
“I concentrated on providing first aid to people. The first medics arrived in a few minutes, but it was not enough, because 200 people were already injured.
“Most of the first aid was done by people there.”
Lars Frommüller, a reporter for the public broadcaster MDR, who arrived at the Christmas market in Magdeburg shortly after the attack, told the BBC what he saw.
“There were ambulances everywhere, there were police, there were many firefighters.
“It was a real chaotic situation. We saw blood on the floor, we saw people sitting next to each other and holding gold and silver foil around them. And we saw a lot of doctors trying to warm people up and help them with their injuries.
“It’s a big shock. It’s a big shock to everyone here in Magdeburg and to everyone in Saxony-Anhalt.’