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Bus Crash in Southwestern France Kills More Than 40 Bus Crash in Southwestern France Kills More Than 40
(34 minutes later)
PARIS — At least 42 people were killed on Friday morning when a bus and a truck collided on a road in southwestern France, according to local officials.PARIS — At least 42 people were killed on Friday morning when a bus and a truck collided on a road in southwestern France, according to local officials.
A spokeswoman for the prefecture in Bordeaux said that the accident had taken place on a road near the town of Puisseguin, near the town of Libourne and about 35 miles east of Bordeaux. Sixty firefighters were reported to be at the scene. A statement from the Élysée Palace said that the “terrible accident” had taken place on the D17 secondary road near the village of Puisseguin, close to the city of Libourne and about 35 miles east of Bordeaux.
Five people were lightly wounded, and three survived the crash unharmed, according to the spokeswoman, who said that further details would be released by the prefecture in a coming statement. She said that no children were believed to have been killed. The truck, which was carrying wood, swerved at a curve in the road and struck the bus, causing both vehicles to burst into flames. Sixty firefighters were reported to be at the scene, trying to bring the blaze under control.
President François Hollande said on Twitter that the accident had caused “many deaths,” and that the government was “totally mobilized on this terrible tragedy.” Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve was reported to be headed to the scene, as was Alain Juppé, a former prime minister who is now the mayor of Bordeaux. Five people were lightly wounded, and three survived the crash unharmed, according to a spokeswoman for the prefecture in Bordeaux. She said that no children were believed to have been killed.
Most of the victims were retirees who were on a day excursion, an Interior Ministry spokesman, Pierre-Henry Brandet, told BFM TV.
“It is an enormous tragedy,” President François Hollande said in a statement. On Twitter, he said that the government was “totally mobilized.”
Prime Minister Manuel Valls and Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve were headed to the scene, as was Alain Juppé, a former prime minister who is now the mayor of Bordeaux.
If the initial death toll is confirmed, Radio France reported, it would be the worst road disaster in France since one that killed 53 people near Beaune, the wine capital of Burgundy, in July 1982.If the initial death toll is confirmed, Radio France reported, it would be the worst road disaster in France since one that killed 53 people near Beaune, the wine capital of Burgundy, in July 1982.