The day after the serious bus accident in Venice, the cause of the accident is still unclear. At least 21 people died in the accident. One of the fatalities and one injured person come from Germany.
In the serious accident involving a campsite shuttle bus in Venice, only nine of the 21 fatalities have so far been identified, as the President of the Veneto region, Luca Zaia, wrote on Facebook. This includes minors. One fatality was a German or a German – Zaia did not name a gender. The driver of the bus, a 40-year-old Italian, was also among those killed, said prefect Michele di Bari to the Ansa news agency.
The Foreign Office confirmed that Germans were also affected by the serious bus accident in Venice. However, a spokeswoman did not provide any further information. When asked at the regular government press conference in Berlin, she said she could confirm that there were German nationals on the bus. The spokeswoman added that no further information could be provided at the moment. The German Consulate General in Milan is in contact with authorities and people.
According to the Italian authorities, eleven foreigners are among the 15 injured. These are a German, four people from Ukraine, a Frenchman, a Croatian, a couple from Spain and two minors from Austria, as reported by the Adnkronos news agency. They would be treated in nearby hospitals – many of them in the intensive care unit.
Shuttle bus on the way back from Venice
The hybrid-operated shuttle bus of a campsite with around 40 passengers fell several meters from a bridge on Tuesday evening around 7:45 p.m. The accident occurred in the district of Mestre, a mainland district of Venice.
The bus caught fire immediately after impacting the railway tracks and overhead wires under the bridge. According to the fire department, the fire was difficult to put out because the bus battery then burned. Therefore, it could take a long time to identify all the victims. The Venice public prosecutor’s office opened an investigation that evening.
Most of the people on board were day-trippers who wanted to return from the Venetian old town to the mainland in the evening. Many holidaymakers in Venice spend the day in the old town and return to the mainland in the evening. The overnight prices are significantly lower there. The railway line between Mestre on the mainland and the famous lagoon city of Venice was interrupted for hours.
The cause of the accident remains unclear
It is not yet clear why the bus left the road. The mayor of the Italian lagoon city, Luigi Brugnaro, said: “We don’t understand how this could have happened.” The authorities hope to obtain information from the images from surveillance cameras.
Italy’s Transport Minister Matteo Salvini had previously hypothesized on television channel Rete4 that the accident could possibly be due to the driver’s sudden malaise or illness. One thing that supports this theory is that there were no skid marks at the scene of the accident.
Numerous rescue workers at the scene of the accident.
Mayor: “Apocalyptic scenes”
Mayor Brugnaro spoke on X, formerly Twitter, of a “great tragedy” and “apocalyptic scenes” for which there are no words. We mourn in memory of the numerous victims.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her condolences. She is “in close contact” with Mayor Brugnaro and Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi.
Expressions of solidarity came from many countries. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock wrote in English on X: “My thoughts are with the victims, their families and friends.”
With information from Anja Miller, ARD Studio Rome