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Twelve die in Hungarian motorway bus crash
A Polish pilgrimage coach overturned in a ditch on Hungary's M3 motorway, killing twelve people.
What happened
Twelve people died after a Polish-registered coach left the M3 motorway near Mezokeresztes in eastern Hungary early Sunday, entered a ditch and overturned. The bus was travelling toward Nyíregyháza. Emergency crews treated survivors, while police took the driver into custody and closed the motorway section for their investigation.
Numbers
- 12 deathsPeople killed in the crash
- 57 passengersPassengers travelling on the coach
- 2 driversDrivers travelling on the coach
- 37 injuriesMinor injuries treated by ambulance
Questions
- Who were the travellers?
- The passengers were Polish pilgrims returning to the Podkarpacie region after a pilgrimage in Bosnia and Herzegovina as a group.
- Why are police examining the driver?
- Police's preliminary account is that he fell asleep while driving; Hungarian officers began questioning him after taking him into custody.
- How serious were survivors' injuries?
- Ambulance officials classified injuries from life-threatening to serious and minor, showing that survivors had varied levels of need.
- What had to happen before rescue?
- Firefighters first tried lifting the rear axle to free people trapped beneath the coach before cranes were brought in.
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The catch
The preliminary account of the driver sleeping does not settle the crash's cause or responsibility.