published Jul 14th 2016, 6:45 pm, by Mark Deen, Gregory Viscusi and Phil Serafino

(Bloomberg) —
France again was put on a terror footing as a truck drove into a late-night crowd in Nice on the country’s Mediterranean coast, killing at least 70 people as the nation celebrated its Bastille Day holiday. The Paris prosecutor’s office called it a terrorist attack.

Several hundred were injured and police ordered people off the streets. The truck driver was shot and killed by police, Sebastien Humbert, deputy prefect for the region, said on BFM TV. Paris anti-terrorism prosecutor Francois Molins has been put in charge of the investigation, said his spokeswoman, Agnes Thibault Lecuivre.

President Francois Hollande returned to Paris from Avignon for an emergency meeting at the interior ministry. Hollande’s administration has dealt with multiple attacks since the beginning of 2015, notably the terrorist assault in Paris Nov. 13 that left 130 dead. Just today, the president said he intended to let the state of emergency imposed at the time lapse.

“We are all mobilized and ready to respond,” Humbert said. “The message is that we are taking care of the victims.” Authorities urged crowds to go home, and the city’s taxis volunteered their services for free to evacuate people from the area.

The attack in Nice happened on the Promenade des Anglais, the main strip running along its beach and near the Negresco, a well-known Art Deco hotel. Shotgun-toting police wearing black riot gear sealed off the street and soldiers blocked intersections preventing people from getting near the site. The Ruhl Casino two blocks away was closed following the attack, staff said.