Bus crash in Hungary kills at least 12

Police say they have arrested the driver of a bus that crashed in Hungary, killing at least 12 people. The bus was carrying Polish pilgrims, media report.

https://p.dw.com/p/5Iu6A

Aerial view of cranes, flatbed truck and emergency vehicles near overturned red bus
Cranes were used to extract the bus from the ditchImage: Zoltan Mathe/MTI/AP Photo/dpa/picture alliance

At least 12 people have died after a Polish coach crashed into a ditch and overturned in eastern Hungary, police said on Sunday.

According to emergency services, 47 people were injured in the incident, 10 seriously.

 Overturned red bus seen from back, emergency personnel nearby
The bus overturned after crashing into a ditch, police saidImage: Zoltan Mathe/MTI/AP Photo/picture alliance

What do we know about the accident?

The accident occurred on the M3 motorway near Mezokeresztes, around 140 kilometers (87 miles) east of Budapest, according to police in the district capital, Miskolc. 

Police said they believe the driver fell asleep at the wheel during the overnight journey into Sunday. He was subsequently arrested.

Poland’s PAP news agency reported that the bus had been carrying a group of pilgrims from Podkarpackie province in the far southeast of Poland.

The group, said to number 59 people, including two drivers, had been returning from Bosnia-Herzegovina, PAP said. 

Fourteen ambulances were deployed to the scene of the crash, reports said.

Hungary’s National Directorate for Disaster Management said that several of the passengers had been trapped under the vehicle when it overturned.

 Emergency personnel near overturned red bus
Several passengers were said to have been trapped under the bus when it tipped overImage: Balazs Toth/Mezokovesd Kepekben/REUTERS

Condolences from Hungary, Poland

 Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar has voiced his condolences to the families of the crash victims in a Facebook message and thanked emergency and rescue services.

 Polish President Karol Nawrocki said he was deeply shaken. “In the face of this unimaginable tragedy, which affects us all, my thoughts and prayers go out to the families and loved ones of the victims,” the 43-year-old wrote on X.

Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah

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