TORONTO — A white Ryder rental van killed nine people and injured 16 when its driver plowed through a busy toronto sidewalk on a sunny Monday afternoon, police said.

Toronto Deputy Chief Peter Yuen provided the casualty toll at a news conference.

It was not immediately clear if the incident was a deliberate act by the driver or a traffic mishap.

"Too early to confirm the number of pedestrians struck or their injuries," police said on Twitter.

Police were called just before 1:30 p.m. (1330 GMT) to the corner of Yonge Street and Finch Avenue in the north end of the city, where a van drove onto the sidewalk and hit multiple people, said Toronto Police spokeswoman Meaghan Gray.

The incident happened about 30 kms (18 miles) from downtown, where the Group of Seven foreign ministers of industrialized nations, including Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK and US were meeting on Monday. There was no noticeable change in security around the Intercontinental Hotel where the ministers gathered.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said officials were investigating.

"We're still gathering information and as soon as we can, we'll share more information with Canadians," Trudeau told reporters about an hour after news of the incident broke.

The United States and Europe have seen a string of deadly attacks in which vehicles were used to mow down pedestrians, including an Oct. 31 attack in New York that killed eight.

A Reuters witness said there were at least two bodies at the site of the incident. At least seven people were brought to nearby Sunnybrook Health Services Centre's trauma center, the hospital said on Twitter.

It was not immediately clear if the incident was a deliberate act by the driver or a traffic mishap in a mixed commercial and residential area. — Reuters