PARIS, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- One female "yellow vests" protestor died in Savoie, western France on Saturday when a driver panicked and rammed into the protesting crowd, said French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner.

Castaner said that protestors were surrounding the driver's car and banging on the roof when the accident happened, added that the driver was a mother who were trying to take her sick daughter to the doctor.

Besides the fatal accident, several other injuries had been reported in other areas across the country, including a police officer in the southern city of Grasse, by drivers trying to force their way through the blockades, said Castaner.

The interior minister said the government was very concerned with the situation and urged protesters to "take all precautions" to maintain security.

The "yellow vests" movement, a nation-wide protest against weak economic performance and stagnant income increase under President Emmanuel Macron, started as a campaign against surge in fuel prices this year. Thousands of drivers, wearing the yellow high-visibility vests required to be carried in their cars, blocked roads across France on Saturday.