When a bus powered by methane crashed over a bridge in Venice and caught fire on Tuesday, at least 21 people—including two children and foreign tourists—were killed and numerous others were injured.
Using the phrase “an apocalyptic scene,” mayor Luigi Brugnaro posted on Facebook, “A tragedy has struck our community this evening.” Luca Zaia, the governor of the Venice area, lamented a “tragedy of enormous proportions,” saying “the provisional toll is at least 21 fatalities and over 20 people hospitalized.”
The bodies are being extracted and identified, he said. Not only Italians but citizens of other countries are among the deceased and injured.
German and French citizens were among the deaths, according to Italian news agency ANSA and a city hall spokesman who stated the dead included Ukrainian visitors.
According to a local official speaking to AFP, among the injured were three Ukrainians, a Croatian, a German, and a French national. Around 7:30 p.m. (1730 GMT), the accident happened as the bus was traveling back from a campground to Venice’s old city.
According to firefighters, the bus caught fire after veering off a bridge that crossed a railroad track and connected the cities of Mestre and Marghera in northern Italy.
An AFP photographer observed firefighters scurrying about the burned-out wreckage of the car as it was lying on its roof. Before moving the car to look for other victims, the firefighters waited for the battery to cool
JOIN US ON WHAT'SAPP, TO GET INSTANT STATUS UPDATES AND BE IN THE KNOW.
CLICK HERE
