Twelve killed as Polish bus veers off Hungarian motorway
A bus carrying Polish pilgrims overturned on a Hungarian motorway, resulting in 12 deaths and dozens of injuries. Authorities suspect the driver fell asleep at the wheel, and an investigation is currently underway.
Why it matters
It is a major tragic event involving international travel and cross-border cooperation between Poland and Hungary for emergency response.
Figure caption, Footage shows wreckage of Polish tourist bus
Twelve people were killed and dozens more injured when a bus carrying Polish pilgrims veered off a Hungarian motorway and into a ditch.
Police said the bus overturned after coming off the M3 motorway, which connects Hungary's capital Budapest with the north-eastern city of Nyíregyháza, at around 01:00 local time on Sunday (23:00 GMT on Saturday).
Officers believe the driver fell asleep at the wheel. He has been taken into custody.
Thirty-five out of the 57 passengers and two drivers onboard have been rescued by firefighters so far, state media reports.
Emergency services had been attempting to lift the rear axle of the 24-tonne bus to remove the people trapped underneath before cranes arrived to lift the whole vehicle, according to Hungarian news agency MTI.
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