Bus carrying Ukrainians crashes in Bulgaria: two passengers killed – photo, video

Two Ukrainian nationals have been killed and at least 16 others injured in a bus accident in Bulgaria near the border with Türkiye.

Source: Bulgarian news agency Novinite, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The accident occurred on the Burgas-Malko Tarnovo road near a checkpoint leading to Türkiye. Bulgarian newspaper Dnes Bulgaria reported that the crash happened on a section of road with sharp bends and steep terrain.

Early reports indicate that the bus, carrying 37 passengers and two drivers, all Ukrainian nationals, stopped after running out of fuel, Novinite said. When passengers got off the bus and gathered behind the vehicle, it suddenly began rolling backwards. Authorities said the bus struck a group of people and came to a stop in a roadside ditch.

Footage from the scene indicates that the bus overturned into a ravine. According to Dnes Bulgaria, 29 passengers were inside the vehicle at the time of the accident.

Investigators explained that "the vehicle stalled after running out of fuel. The passengers got off the bus, but shortly afterwards it suddenly moved and ran over people standing behind it".

Two passengers were killed as a result of the incident, and another 16 were injured, some of them seriously.

Emergency services transported six people to hospitals in Burgas and another 10 to an emergency care centre in Malko Tarnovo. The remaining passengers were temporarily accommodated at a reception centre in the border town, where they received medical assistance and essential support.

Local officials said the bus had been travelling to Türkiye as part of a trip involving Ukrainian nationals, including some refugees living in Burgas.

The bus driver was detained by the regional police department in Malko Tarnovo, and an investigation into the circumstances of the incident is ongoing.

Background:

• In mid-April, a minibus carrying Ukrainian nationals was involved in a road accident in Poland's Podkarpackie Voivodeship, injuring six people.
• In February, a Ukrainian national caused a traffic accident in Montenegro after crashing into a vehicle from the motorcade of Prime Minister Milojko Spajić.

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