At least 21 people have died when a bus crashed from an overpass in Venice, northeastern Italy, the prefecture said. "At least 20 dead, a terrible tragedy," the city's mayor, Luigi Brugnaro, told Italian newspaper La Republicca. The accident occurred around seven thirty in the afternoon and the reasons are unknown at the moment.
The vehicle went through the fence of the Vespa footbridge, a stretch of road that passes over a railway track in Mestre, part of the municipality and about 10 kilometers from the canal area. After falling from a height of 10 meters, the bus collided with electrical cables and ended up catching fire. Italian media outlet La Stampa reports that two children were among the dead. In addition, at least 12 people have been injured in the incident, according to the Prefecture, which states that there are still between four and five passengers to locate and increases the death toll to 21.
Rescuers are working at the site where a bus with passengers on board fell from an elevated stretch in Venice, Italy, in an image released by Luigi Brugnaro, mayor of Venice.
Emergency services are working near the area where the bus has collapsed. MANUEL SILVESTRI (REUTERS)
Firefighters have rushed to the scene, along with emergency services and police. MARCO SABADIN (AFP)
The remains of the bus after the accident, which occurred around seven thirty in the afternoon. MARCO SABADIN (AFP)
Firefighters have rushed to the scene, along with emergency services and police. The train line between Venice Station, Santa Lucia, and Mestre is suspended. The Venetian authorities have launched the "major emergencies" protocol, which provides for the provision of all hospital emergency services and the mobilization of reinforcement personnel.
"A terrible tragedy has struck our community tonight. I have immediately ordered municipal mourning in memory of the many victims who were traveling on the crashed bus. An apocalyptic scene; there are no words," Brugnaro wrote in a message on X. In this he has also shared a photograph in which the vehicle is seen on fire.
The Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni, has expressed her "deepest condolences, personally and of the whole Government, for the serious accident that occurred in Mestre. I think of the victims and their families and friends. I am in close contact with Mayor Brugnaro and [Interior] Minister Matteo Piantedosi to follow the news about this tragedy." The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport, Matteo Salvini, "follows the evolution of the dramatic incident of Mestre", as published by his ministry in a note.
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