21 killed after tourist bus plunges from Venice bridge

A bus carrying a group of tourists fell from a bridge near Venice on Tuesday killing at least 21 people.

Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro told Italian state TV channel Rai News24 that there were “at least 20 dead” after a bus veered off the road and fell a few meters close to railway lines in Mestre, a suburb of Venice. 

Following the crash near railway tracks, the bus caught on fire.

“There are at least 20 dead, but some people are still trapped in the wreckage,” Brugnaro said.

The victims of the fatal crash included French, Croatian, German and Ukrainian citizens, as well as the Italian driver. Two children were among the dead, the Ansa newswire reported. The passengers were returning to a campsite in the town of Marghera after visiting Venice, according to authorities.

“The people in the bus found themselves surrounded by flames,” said Mauro Luongo, commander of the Venice firefighters team. “The scene we found was terrible. It took about one hour to extract some of the bodies.”

Venice prefect Michele Di Bari said  there were 15 survivors from the crash.