10 killed, 45 injured as bus crashes off road in Croatia

25 July 2021, 11:24

Croatia bus crash
Croatia Bus Crash. Picture: PA

Police said the bus, with 60 people on board, had Kosovo licence plates and was on a regular route from Germany to the Kosovan capital, Pristina.

A bus swerved off a major road and crashed in Croatia early on Sunday, killing 10 people and injuring at least 45 others, some of them seriously, officials said.

The crash happened near the town of Slavonski Brod on the highway between the capital, Zagreb, and the Serbian border at around 6am local time.

Photos from the scene showed the bus on its side in the grass near the edge of the road.

Firefighters and rescuers could be seen around the vehicle, while traffic on the highway was halted.

Emergency crews work at the site of the crash near Slavonski Brod in Croatia (Luka Safundzic/SBonline/AP)

Police said the bus had Kosovo licence plates and was on a regular route from Germany to the Kosovan capital, Pristina, which is located south of Serbia.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known.

Officials said the bus was carrying 67 passengers, including children, and two drivers.

Local police chief Franjo Galic described the crash as “one of the worst accidents I have ever seen”.

The 45 casualties were taken to hospital in Slavonski Brod. Hospital chief Josip Samardzic said eight people were seriously hurt.

Health Minister Vili Baros later said 15 of the passengers were minors and that one girl had been seriously injured.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic expressed “sadness and grief” and extended his condolences to the relatives of those who died in the crash and the people of Kosovo.

“We hope the injured will recover,” he tweeted.

Police said the bus had Kosovo licence plates and was on a regular route from Germany to the Kosovan capital, Pristina (Luka Safundzic/SBonline/AP)

Kosovo sent its interior minster to Croatia, as top officials offered condolences to the families of the victims and expressed hope for the swift recovery of the injured.

President Vjosa Osmani, who is in Tokyo for the Olympic Games, spoke of her sorrow in a message on Facebook.

“With our heart and in spirit, we are close to the families who lost their loved ones in this tragedy,” she said. “It is an indescribable pain and a great loss.”

The highway where the crash happened is a key traffic artery through Croatia which is busy over the summer because of tourism and foreign workers travelling home from Western Europe.

By Press Association

Latest World News

See more Latest World News

Russia bombed Ukrainian infrastructure overnight

Russia launches 'massive attack' on Ukraine's power supplies, with 'energy security under growing threat'

South Africa Bus Crash

Girl, 8, the sole survivor as 45 die in bus crash off South Africa bridge

A spokesman has denied reports the sausage dog could be banned.

The wurst news is over: Germany denies claims of sausage dog ban

Israel Palestinians Britain Aid

UN top court orders Israel to open more land crossings into Gaza

Greece Confidence Vote

Greece’s government survives no-confidence motion called over rail disaster

Israel Palestinians UN Security Council

Russia ‘abolishes’ monitoring of sanctions on North Korea with UN veto

Firefighters at the scene of a bus crash in Limpopo

Bus falls from bridge in South Africa and erupts into flames, killing at least 45 and leaving child, 8, as lone survivor

Music-Green Day UN

Green Day to headline UN-backed global climate concert

Sam Bankman-Fried

FTX founder Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison for crypto fraud

France Valentino

Former Gucci designer Alessandro Michele named Valentino creative director

Russia Shooting

Russia arrests another suspect in concert hall attack that killed 143

American Easter egg

White House’s annual Easter egg roll to be attended by 40,000 people

Barbers in Paris

Proposal to ban discrimination over a person’s hair passes first legal hurdle

Mahmoud Abbas

Palestinian Authority names new government following pressure to reform

Arvind Kejriwal

Opposition leader Kejriwal locked up for further four days, court rules

Resident clears rubble from home

Russia wears down Ukrainian defences with missile and drone attacks