Carriage crash near Pontresina kills one and injures 12

A 73-year-old woman was killed and 12 people were injured, including two seriously, when a horse-drawn carriage crashed in Val Roseg near Pontresina on Saturday afternoon, SRF reported.

A carriage with two passenger trailers left a gently descending road and struck a tree. The crash triggered a major emergency response, with the injured taken to several hospitals in the canton of Graubünden.

The victims were part of a travel group of about 40 people returning to Pontresina after an excursion in the Upper Engadin valley. The group was travelling in two horse-drawn carriage combinations, according to Graubünden Cantonal Police.

On a downhill section, the driver of one carriage noticed that the brakes were not working properly. The driver tried to steer the three-horse team towards a flatter turnout to reduce its speed. At the start of the manoeuvre, one of the horses fell, leaving the carriage impossible to steer.

The leading carriage then collided heavily with a tree beside the road, partially throwing passengers from the vehicle. The 73-year-old woman suffered fatal injuries at the scene.

Three helicopters and four ambulances transported the injured to nearby hospitals in Graubünden. Care teams looked after the uninjured members of the group in Pontresina. All 40 group members live in Switzerland, police said.

The public prosecutor’s office and Graubünden Cantonal Police are investigating the cause of the crash and the circumstances surrounding it.

Val Roseg is a small valley extending south from Pontresina towards Piz Glüschaint and Piz Roseg. The two peaks lie on the Swiss-Italian border, while Piz Corvatsch borders the valley to the west and Piz Bernina to the east.