A81 in Sarthe: 4 dead in coach accident, drivers taken into custody
Eleven other people were seriously injured in a crash involving a bus carrying Ukrainian adults and teenagers. The two drivers, both Ukrainian nationals, were taken into custody for "involuntary manslaughter and injury . "
Four people died and eleven others were seriously injured on Friday in an accident involving a coach carrying Ukrainian adults and teenagers on the A81 motorway in Sarthe , the department's prefecture announced.
Around midday, a "bus (which) was transporting Ukrainian teenagers and adults on a school exchange" had an accident on the A81 motorway, said the Minister of Labour, Astrid Panosyan-Bouvet, while visiting Sarthe. The toll was four deaths, nine in critical condition and 18 with minor injuries, she said at a press conference in Degré, a town not far from the scene of the accident. "58 Ukrainian middle and high school students, as well as their supervisors," were on board the bus.
"The four deceased are adults," said Sarthe prefect Emmanuel Aubry, stressing that the coach was "the only vehicle involved" in the accident that took place on the A81 motorway, at kilometer 179, in the Rennes-Le Mans direction. An "investigation will determine the causes," he added. An initial report indicated that 11 people were in critical condition. The accident was "very, very sudden," Ukrainian ambassador to France Vadym Omelchenko told reporters on the scene, having spoken with victims.
The two bus drivers were taken into custody for " involuntary manslaughter and injury," the Le Mans prosecutor's office announced Friday evening. "The two bus drivers, both Ukrainian nationals, were taken into custody as part of an investigation into the flagrante delicto of involuntary manslaughter and injury by the driver of a motor vehicle," Le Mans public prosecutor Carine Halley said in a statement.
The passengers were mainly teenagers aged 15 to 17 who had met students from the La Touche agricultural high school in Ploërmel (Morbihan), the Ukrainian embassy in France told AFP. The bus had left Ploërmel in the morning to return to Kitsman, in western Ukraine, where the teenagers were from, it said. "We are in contact with the victims' families. Some children have managed to contact their parents," it added.
The accident occurred at midday near the town of Degré, at kilometer 179, according to a press release from the prefecture. Marquees were erected near the white bus, which was surrounded by numerous emergency vehicles. A helicopter landed on the asphalt.
The A81 motorway was closed in both directions. During a visit to Saint-Rémy-de-Provence (Bouches-du-Rhône), Prime Minister François Bayrou said he was "thinking of the victims of the terrible bus accident that occurred in Sarthe." "When tragedies of this nature occur in our region, we are all concerned and we will do what is necessary to clarify the circumstances of this accident," he added.
In a message on X, the Minister of Transport, Philippe Tabarot, expressed "his condolences" for the victims of this "very serious road accident" with a "very heavy" human toll. No further details on the circumstances of the accident or the identities of the victims were available at this stage. Led by the prefect of Sarthe, Emmanuel Aubry, a Departmental Operations Center (COD) has been opened.
According to the prefecture, some 87 firefighters from the Departmental Fire and Rescue Service (SDIS) and 49 fire engines responded to the bus and its passengers.
The University Hospital ( CHU ) of Angers, located an hour's drive from the scene of the accident, is receiving the first injured, the establishment announced in a press release, which opened "a hospital crisis unit at 1 p.m. to coordinate the care of the injured." "The Hélismur 49 is also deployed to recover the victims on site and transfer them by air to the CHU," it specified. "People with very minor injuries or those involved (...) will be treated in the Degré community hall," according to Mr. Aubry.
Relatives of the deceased will be able to visit a "funeral chapel" which has been set up in the commune of Degré , he added. In a statement, he called for "the greatest vigilance in this area and not to hinder emergency services." A toll-free number has been activated by the prefecture: 09 70 80 90 40.
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