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| Three British tourists killed in car crash in Iceland | Three British tourists killed in car crash in Iceland |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Three British tourists including a child have been killed after a 4x4 crashed while crossing a bridge in Iceland. | Three British tourists including a child have been killed after a 4x4 crashed while crossing a bridge in Iceland. |
| Four other people, including two children, were critically injured during the incident, which occurred at about 9.30am on Thursday, when the vehicle drove through a barrier on the one-lane bridge at Skeiðarársandur in the south of the country, Icelandic police said. The car landed on a riverbank. | Four other people, including two children, were critically injured during the incident, which occurred at about 9.30am on Thursday, when the vehicle drove through a barrier on the one-lane bridge at Skeiðarársandur in the south of the country, Icelandic police said. The car landed on a riverbank. |
| Adolf Erlingsson, a tour guide who was among the first on the scene, said: “It was horrible. The car seemed to have hit the ground many metres from where it stopped. We struggled getting everyone out.” | Adolf Erlingsson, a tour guide who was among the first on the scene, said: “It was horrible. The car seemed to have hit the ground many metres from where it stopped. We struggled getting everyone out.” |
| Erlingsson estimated that the car had fallen about five or six metres from the bridge and said it was a “total wreck” when he arrived at the scene. | Erlingsson estimated that the car had fallen about five or six metres from the bridge and said it was a “total wreck” when he arrived at the scene. |
| “The driver must have lost control somehow and it went through the railing,” said Erlingsson, a former broadcaster. He said the vehicle had flipped over on to sandy ground, missing a river. | “The driver must have lost control somehow and it went through the railing,” said Erlingsson, a former broadcaster. He said the vehicle had flipped over on to sandy ground, missing a river. |
| “Conditions were quite good, maybe a bit wet. It was just about freezing, but I didn’t detect any ice on the road,” he said. Erlingsson described how he and others had to cut the driver out of the wreckage using a winch from another vehicle. “The driver was alive and trapped more or less under the dashboard. We were trying to get the people out of the car and helping them. It was a very difficult situation.” | “Conditions were quite good, maybe a bit wet. It was just about freezing, but I didn’t detect any ice on the road,” he said. Erlingsson described how he and others had to cut the driver out of the wreckage using a winch from another vehicle. “The driver was alive and trapped more or less under the dashboard. We were trying to get the people out of the car and helping them. It was a very difficult situation.” |
| He said three people were trapped in the car when he arrived and he believed that two of them were dead. A number of others were outside and were semi-conscious. | He said three people were trapped in the car when he arrived and he believed that two of them were dead. A number of others were outside and were semi-conscious. |
| The injured included two adults and two children aged between seven and nine, according to the Icelandic Police. The vehicle involved was a rented seven-person Toyota Land Cruiser, which careered off the bridge over the Núpsvötn river, according to the reports. | |
| Images taken at the scene showed emergency personnel rendering medical assistance on rocky ground beneath the bridge. As well as local police, two helicopters were called from a coastguard station while another flew from Reykjavik. | Images taken at the scene showed emergency personnel rendering medical assistance on rocky ground beneath the bridge. As well as local police, two helicopters were called from a coastguard station while another flew from Reykjavik. |
| The bridge where the crash took place was built in 1973 and is one of the longest in the country. | The bridge where the crash took place was built in 1973 and is one of the longest in the country. |
| Of the 18 people who have died in traffic accidents in Iceland this year, half have been foreign nationals. Last year was the first on record when more foreigners died than residents, according to figures from the Icelandic Transport Authority. | Of the 18 people who have died in traffic accidents in Iceland this year, half have been foreign nationals. Last year was the first on record when more foreigners died than residents, according to figures from the Icelandic Transport Authority. |
| The UK’s Foreign Office advises visitors to Iceland to take particular care when driving on gravel and loose surfaces. It says distances between towns can be great and driving can take longer than expected. | The UK’s Foreign Office advises visitors to Iceland to take particular care when driving on gravel and loose surfaces. It says distances between towns can be great and driving can take longer than expected. |
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