A96 bus crash kills two; 17 seriously injured out of danger

All 17 people seriously injured when a tour bus crashed on the A96 motorway in Bavaria are now out of life-threatening danger, BR reported Monday. Two people died in the crash near Igling, in the Landsberg am Lech district.

The two people who died were a 58-year-old man and a 27-year-old woman, both Philippine nationals living in Italy. They died at the scene. Another 13 passengers were slightly injured.

The bus was carrying a 33-person Philippine tour group and two Italian drivers from Milan to Munich’s Oktoberfest. At about 6 a.m. Sunday, it left the road to the right and overturned between the Buchloe-Ost and Landsberg-West junctions. No other vehicle was involved. The drivers were largely uninjured, police said.

A Philippine government delegation travelled from Frankfurt to Landsberg on Monday to assess the situation and speak with injured passengers. The Philippine consulate said it was in close contact with some of those affected and their families and was ready to provide consular assistance.

The Bavarian Red Cross said it had supported around 20 people in Landsberg by Sunday evening, providing fresh clothes and other necessities. Some travellers returned to Italy, while others stayed in the region near injured relatives. About 70 volunteer disaster-response workers were called in; together with emergency medical services, around 150 aid organisation personnel took part.

Authorities have opened proceedings against the 40-year-old driver on suspicion of negligent homicide in road traffic. The Augsburg public prosecutor’s office commissioned an accident analysis to establish the cause of the crash.

Emergency crews, including several fire services and nine rescue helicopters, responded. The A96 was initially closed in both directions and later reopened in stages. Traffic was flowing freely again shortly after 2 p.m. Sunday.