An American father and son were killed along with dozens of others in the horrific attack on a Bastille Day celebration in Nice, France on Thursday.
The U.S. State Department confirmed that two Americans had been killed, but did not provide their names. However, multiple outlets are reporting that they were Sean Copeland, 52, and his son Brodie, 11, of Texas.
According to Texas CBS affiliate DFW, the two were in Nice on a family vacation when they were killed. The Copeland family issued a statement after learning of the pair’s death.
“We are heartbroken and in shock over the loss of Brodie Copeland, an amazing son and brother who lit up our lives, and Sean Copeland, a wonderful husband and father,” the statement reads. “They are so loved.”
The Copelands were among the 84 people killed in the attack, while dozens more were injured, some critically. The driver of the truck, identified Friday morning as Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, drove down the Promenade des Anglais and careened down the street for more than a mile, reportedly zig-zagging to maximize pedestrian casualties.
The driver was killed by authorities, after what Agence France Presse reports was an exchange of gunfire. It is unclear whether or not there were any accomplices.
French President Francois Hollande spoke around 3:30 a.m. local time, vowing to extend the nation’s state of emergency an additional three months just hours after announcing it would soon be lifted.
The emergency status had been in place since a terrorist siege in Paris on Nov. 13 last year killed 130 people in a wave of coordinated attacks across several locations over the course of one night.