Disasters & Accidents

5 dead, 2 rescued after bus plunges into Spanish river

(Update 3: Upgrades death toll)

Pontevedra, Spain, Dec 25 (EFE).- Rescue teams on Sunday found a fifth body in their search for missing people after a bus believed to be transporting a total of nine people including the driver plunged into a river in northwest Spain late on Christmas Eve, while two remain missing and two were rescued alive, emergency services said.

The driver of the bus and a passenger were rescued from the wreckage and taken to hospital late Saturday following the crash.

Earlier on Sunday, rescue teams discovered the body of a female passenger inside the vehicle and later found a fourth body in the river.

The vehicle, which belongs to the company Monbus and was en route to Pontevedra, in Spain’s Galicia region, veered off a bridge and plummeted into the Lérez river late Saturday.

The accident occurred at around 9.19pm and authorities were first alerted by a passerby who saw the destroyed railing on the side of the road, but who did not locate a vehicle in the water.

Minutes later, someone from inside the bus phoned the emergency services, which allowed the rescue operation to get underway.

The search for missing people was temporarily called off in the early hours of the morning due to adverse conditions as the river swelled but was resumed at 9.30am on Christmas morning.EFE

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