Date 31 July 2009 Injuries 36 | Total number of deaths 6 | |
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Location Sant Pol de Mar, Catalonia, Spain | ||
The Sant Pol de Mar bus crash was a traffic accident which occurred on Thursday 30 July 2009 in Sant Pol de Mar, near Barcelona, in north-eastern Spain. Six Dutch tourists are reported to have died on the spot, whilst between another 36 and 44 were injured in the accident. Dutch media report the tour-bus left the highway on a bend, hit a crash barrier and then overturned. Some of these are in a serious condition. The death toll, which was initially reported as eight, may rise.
Contents
The accident was covered by news organisations around the globe including those in Australia, Canada, China, France, India, Ireland, South Africa, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom.
Background
The bus carried 65 Dutch tourists who been visiting Barcelona for the day and were on their way home. They were not part of an organised trip and were staying in different hotels. The bus was locally hired. There was also a tour guide of Dutch extraction and a Spanish driver. Further information on the tourists has been limited for reasons relating to privacy.
Crash
The crash occurred when the bus went off a road at a bend as it was leaving a highway at around 23:10 (21:10 GMT). Emergency services hurried to the scene. The injured parties were taken to eight different hospitals in the surrounding area.
It has not been confirmed that all the tourists are Dutch. The only non-Dutch person on the coach was the Spanish driver who was among the seriously injured.
Cause
The cause of the incident remains unclear.
Manager Pere Artau from bus firm Plenacosta stated the driver has been working for the company for over sixteen years and tested negative on an alcohol test.