Vasilija buried in Kotor after Niš Ekspres coach overturned near Zagreb
17‑year‑old student from Kraljevo Art School was buried in Kotor after a Niš Ekspres bus overturned on the A3 near Ivanić‑Grad; two people died.
Seventeen-year-old Vasilija, who died in a road accident on the A3 motorway near Zagreb, was buried in her hometown of Kotor, Montenegro. The student had been travelling with classmates and a teacher when the Niš Ekspres coach overturned near Ivanić-Grad.
School community mourns
Vasilija was a fourth‑year pupil at the Kraljevo Art School in Serbia and held Montenegrin citizenship; she was born in 2009. The group was en route to Prague to take part in a symposium for art schools when the crash occurred.
According to the information released so far, two people died in the accident on the A3 motorway, one of them Vasilija; other passengers suffered injuries. A teacher and another student who were travelling with her were treated for injuries and, the school said, are out of life‑threatening danger.
The Kraljevo Art School issued an emotional statement after the tragedy. In English translation, the message read: "With immeasurable pain we received the news that our fourth‑year pupil, Vasilija, tragically lost her life in a serious traffic accident." The school emphasised that her death has left a void in their community and that classrooms fell silent after the news.
In the same statement the staff added: "Her place remains among us, and the memory of her will forever be part of our school family. May she have eternal glory and gratitude." The message, signed by the school collective and the principal, also expressed condolences to the family and support for the injured.
Authorities have said the exact causes of the coach overturning will be determined by an official investigation. The case has renewed public attention on the safety of long international bus trips involving pupils and teachers.
Photo: press material from the event
