At least 12 people were killed and 10 others seriously injured when a passenger bus carrying Polish tourists overturned on a highway in Hungary early Sunday, police said.
The accident occurred around 1am on the eastbound lanes of the M3 motorway near Mezokeresztes, about 140 kilometres (87 miles) east of Budapest.
Police said the bus veered off the highway and plunged into a ditch before overturning. Preliminary investigations indicated that the driver may have fallen asleep at the wheel. The driver was taken into custody, authorities said.
Hungary’s National Directorate for Disaster Management said 57 passengers and two drivers were on board when the crash occurred. Several passengers were trapped beneath the overturned vehicle and had to be rescued.
Polish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maciej Wewiór told Polish news agency PAP that everyone aboard the bus was a Polish citizen.
The passengers were from Poland’s southeastern Podkarpackie region and were returning from a pilgrimage to Bosnia-Herzegovina, according to the regional government in Rzeszow.
Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar said at least 10 people sustained serious injuries in the crash.
He expressed condolences to the families of those killed and thanked emergency responders for their efforts at the accident site.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki also expressed deep sorrow over the tragedy and offered his sympathy to the victims’ families and loved ones.
