Bus crash near Mezőkeresztes kills 12, leaves 10 critically injured

At around 1 a.m. on the night between Saturday and Sunday, a coach carrying Polish pilgrims back from Medjugorje left the road, fell into a canal and overturned near Mezőkeresztes in Hungary. Of the 57 people on board, 12 died and 10 were seriously injured and taken to hospital.

Rescue teams forced to enter through windows to free trapped passengers

Emergency crews began extracting people through the bus windows immediately at the scene, working to free passengers who were trapped underneath seats and debris. Medical teams transported the most seriously hurt to nearby hospitals for treatment.

Police said the driver is suspected of having fallen asleep at the wheel and has been detained as investigators probe the circumstances of the crash. Authorities described the collision as the worst bus accident in Hungary in the last 23 years.

One of the injured passengers, Helena Tlucek, described the chaotic moments after the vehicle overturned. "The bus just turned over, it turned over and I hit my head, but I was conscious enough to understand what had happened because all the seats were torn. People were under the seats, everyone was screaming and asking for help. I was injured too, my shoulder was broken, my ribs were broken, and my spine was injured," she said.

She also recounted pulling other passengers to safety: "I pulled my sister out, or rather I pulled her by the legs and I told her — save yourself with your hands, and I'll pull you by the legs. I grabbed the belt of a man who was trapped under the seat and pulled him out that way. After that, I collapsed," Helena added.

Investigators continue to examine the scene and interview survivors as they work to determine the exact chain of events that led to the coach leaving the roadway. Authorities have not released further details about the identities of the victims or the nationalities of those hospitalized beyond the initial passenger count.

Photo: Printskrin/Iks