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Saturday 12 September 2020
A long-distance bus pulls out of the lane of Autobahn 24 in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and into a ditch. More than 30 people are injured, three of them seriously, according to police. There are also initial details on how the accident occurred.
In a long-distance bus accident on Autobahn 24 near Wöbbelin in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, according to police, 31 people were injured early Saturday morning. The Flixbus company initially confirmed three injuries. All the occupants of the bus, 30 passengers and two drivers according to Flixbus, arrived at the hospitals as a precaution. “We can confirm that the driving and rest times were met,” said a Flixbus spokesman. The bus was on its way between Prague and Hamburg.
According to the police, the 47-year-old Czech driver ran off the road and rolled over on the right side.
(Photo: Picture Alliance / dpa)
A police spokesman in Rostock said the cause of the crash north of Ludwigslust is still being determined, it may be the driver’s microsleep. “The investigation is ongoing”. According to the spokesman, the weather conditions were normal at the time of the accident. Three people were seriously injured, but their lives were not in danger. 28 inmates were slightly injured. A rescue helicopter landed at the crash site, but was not used.
According to the police, the 47-year-old Czech driver took the double-decker bus to the right of the lane at 5:45 a.m. and rolled over to the right side. There were no further details on the injured. According to the police, there were German, Czech, Romanian, Turkish, Albanian, British, Indian, Egyptian and Chinese citizens on the bus. The children were not there.
40 first responders and six volunteer fire brigades with 68 emergency services went to the scene of the accident. After the accident, the motorway between the Wöbbelin and Hagenow junctions in the direction of Hamburg was completely closed. Initially there was no information on the amount of material damage.
Bus accidents are relatively rare
Larger bus accidents are more likely to cause a stir, but they are relatively rare. In May 2019, a long-distance bus near Leipzig had an accident. A woman died and nine people, including the bus driver, were seriously injured. Investigations revealed that the driver no longer had his vehicle under control due to a “medical problem.” In June 2019, seven people were injured when a Flixbus collided with a truck on Autobahn 5 near Karlsruhe, which suddenly changed lanes.
Almost a year earlier, 22 people were injured near Rostock. Her bus went off the road and rolled over into a ditch. Despite these accidents, long-distance buses are among the safest modes of transportation. “The risk of having an accident with a coach is significantly less than if you travel in your own car,” says the ADAC. According to the Federal Statistical Office, buses are only involved in just under one percent of all personal injury traffic accidents.
