A bus carrying many tourists fell from a bridge on Tuesday evening. The reason for this accident is still unknown. The toll could rise, authorities fear.
Venice is in mourning. At least 21 people died and more than 20 others were hospitalized when a bus carrying tourists fell off a bridge and caught fire on Tuesday (October 3). The causes of the accident are still unknown. The identification of the victims is still in progress, but “some minors” are among the passengers, assured Luca Zaia, the governor of Veneto, who deplored “a tragedy of enormous proportions”.
The bus fell off a bridge
The accident happened shortly after 7:30 p.m. Tuesday evening. The bus was carrying out a shuttle between the historic center of Venice and a campsite located on dry land, on behalf of the public transport company of Venice (ACTV). This destination explains that “the victims and injured are of several nationalities”said Luca Zaia.
According to the transalpine daily The Corriere della Sera, the bus left its lane, on a bridge spanning a railway line between Mestre and Marghera, two localities in the municipality of Venice. He smashed through the safety rail and fell from a height of around ten meters near the railway tracks below.
The bus, a hybrid vehicle, then caught fire, notably due to the presence of methane. According to the Italian Interior Minister, Matteo Piantedosi, this gas, which powered the bus, was “an aggravating factor”SO “the fire spread quickly”he justified on the public channel Rai 1.
Victims of several nationalities
Several dozen people were on the bus. Among the 21 people killed, there are currently five Ukrainians, a German, a Frenchman, a Croatian and an Italian, said Michele Di Bari, the prefect of Venice, reports The Corriere della Sera. Two children are among the deceased, added the spokesperson for the city mayor. The identification of the victims was still underway overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
The toll could rise further. Rescuers were waiting Tuesday evening for the batteries of the hybrid vehicle to cool so they could move it and explore the carcass.
To cope with the influx of injured people, the mayor of Venice, Luigi Brugnaro, requested “up to the entire health system to deploy all possible resources to provide maximum assistance”reports The Corriere della Sera. THE “major emergencies” protocol was therefore triggered in hospitals in the region, in Mestre, Padua, Treviso and Mirano.
The causes of the tragedy still unknown
According to the first elements of the investigation, “the driver, a 40-year-old Italian, felt unwell”, MEP Sandro Gozi said on franceinfo. There is no evidence that he was driving at high speed, according to him, because “it’s a very busy bridge where you can’t drive fast, you go very slowly”. In Il Corriere della Serra, Massimo Fiorese, CEO of the La Linea company to which the vehicle belonged, the bus was less than a year old. According to him, the driver started his work day around 6 p.m. “I think the driver was sick, otherwise I have no explanation“, he conceded. This hypothesis of unease was also mentioned by Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, also Minister of Transport, on the Rete 4 channel.
The Venice public prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation. “At present, we are not able to provide a precise reconstruction of the events.” ensured on a daily basis New Venezia Le Attorney General, Bruno Cherchi, who visited the site. Police collected CCTV footage, newspaper says Venice Today.
An international emotion
The Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, immediately expressed her “deep condolences”. “I am in contact with Mayor Luigi Brugnaro and Minister Matteo Salvini to follow the news of this tragedy”she added.
This is the deepest cord, my personal and the government all, for a serious incident in Mestre. He thinks he’s going to live quickly and I’m my family and friend. Sono en stretto contatto con il Sindaco @LuigiBrugnaro and with the Minister @Piantedosim to follow the notification…
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) October 3, 2023
Emmanuel Macron also reacted to X. “Our thoughts this evening are with the Italian people, the families and loved ones of the victims of the terrible tragedy in Venice”, he wrote. The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, expressed, in Italian, her “sincere condolences to the families of the victims and the injured”while the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, said, also in Italian, “deeply distressed by the terrible accident”.