It was the worst road accident in France since 53 people, mostly children, died in a bus crash in Burgundy in July 1982, according to the independent road safety organization Association Prevention Routiere.
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A French investigator says it’s far too early to know the cause of a fiery crash between a truck and a bus full of retirees that killed 43 people Friday morning – France’s deadliest road accident in more than 30 years.
They must also still determine exactly how many passengers were on board the coach as there is no official list. “We went back to pull two people who were trapped on the stairs and couldn’t get out”, he said. The bus was left a charred frame. In recent years the annual death toll has dropped below 4,000. He said the relatives of the victims could be assured of “the solidarity of the whole nation”.
Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve and Prime Minister Manuel Valls are now visiting the area; French President Francois Hollande sent his condolences from Greece, where he’s currently visiting.
Alain Vidalies, the secretary of state for transport, told the public radio station France Info he did not believe the condition of the road was a factor.
Among the mourners was 73-year-old carpenter Jean-Claude Leonardet, bandages around his face, who was one of only eight people who managed to escape from the blazing bus. One survivor told yesterday of the horrifying speed with which the blaze took hold, and of the desperate efforts to rescue people from the burning vehicle.
“We will have the identification results and will be able to return the bodies to their families in about three weeks”, he said.
Col. Patrick Touron of the Criminal Research Institute of the Gendarmerie joined other investigators Saturday on a winding road near the village of Puisseguin, near Bordeaux.
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He said the black boxes are “seriously damaged” and will have to be sent to “the correct experts so as to extract information”.
