On October 3, a bus carrying dozens of people, in Venice, fell 15 meters (49.21 feet) from an elevated road. This fiery crash killed 21 and left 18 injured. The bus was mostly filled with foreign tourists who were returning to a campsite.
The bus was taken by a Venice company, tasked with picking up tourists from the historic Centre of Venice and taking them to a campsite in the Marghera district. While driving on an elevated road it fell a few meters before crashing close to Mestre’s railway tracks. Soon after, it caught fire. The governor describes this as an “apocalyptic scene.”
The cause of the crash is unknown. “The bus was new and electric, and that street wasn’t particularly problematic,” The Veneto region governor, Luca Zaia, told RAI state television. Venice city’s region governor, Renato Boraso, said the driver Alberto Rizzotto, was well experienced. Zaia also said, “The driver was an expert, a good person, very well-referenced.” Alberto Rizzotto had worked for the bus company for seven years.
“There’s a video of the bus just before it falls,” Zaia told the Ansa news agency. “The vehicle arrives, slows down, and brakes. It’s almost at a standstill when it crashes through the guardrail. I think the driver must have fallen ill because otherwise, I can’t explain it.”
Local prosecutors are investigating if Alberto might have fallen ill while driving.
Passengers
Those who died consisted of at least five Ukrainians, three German citizens, two Portuguese, a South African, and the Italian man who was driving the bus. DNA samples are being used to identify those who weren’t carrying any personal documents because they cannot be identified due to being badly burned by the fire. Since 39 of the passengers were tourists, families were arriving in Venice from other countries to identify the dead.
Around 15 people were left injured. Those injured included Ukrainians, Austrians, Spaniards, and other foreign tourists.
Many of those involved in the crash were young. Three of those who died were children, one was a baby. A 3-year-old and nine others were left in critical condition. The French Foreign Ministry confirmed that there was a French national on the bus. Hospital psychologists are working to help the victims deal with the trauma.
Two German brothers, ages seven and 13, are being treated for broken bones in a hospital in nearby Treviso. Their parents were killed in the accident. The boys are being given counseling.
The city’s authorities have declared three days of mourning for those in the crash. Venice prosecutor, Bruno Cherchi said only three or four survivors had been able to talk to investigators, following the crash.
Witness view of the accident
Boubacar Touré and Odion Eboigbe ran to the scene after hearing a sudden crash beside their apartment. When approaching the bus the two would immediately see the unresponsive driver. While further approaching the accident, Boubacar heard a woman screaming. He managed to pull her out a window with her son. Her son was badly burnt but was still alive. Boubacar said the fire was so intense that fire extinguishers had little impact on the flames.
Another witness, Godstime Erheneden, was in his apartment near the site when he heard a crash. He rushed down to the accident and was among the first to enter the bus. Godstime had saved a Girl and a man before returning for a screaming girl.
“The woman was screaming, ‘my daughter, my daughter,’ and I went back in. I saw this girl who must have been 2 years old. I have a son who is a year and 10 months old, and they are the same size. It felt like I was holding my son in my arms. It was terrible. I don’t know if she survived. I thought she was alive but when the rescuers arrived, they took her away immediately,” Erheneden said.
By Jamarion Thomas
Sources
BBC: Venice bus crash: Victims still unidentified almost 24 hours on
Yahoo News: Bus crash across the lagoon from Venice’s historic center kills 21 people, including Ukrainian tourists
NPR: A bus of tourists in Venice dropped from an elevated road, killing 21 in fiery crash
insert image courtesy of Leon Barnard’s Flickr page
first and featured image courtesy of MinorProphet’s Flickr page
