Hungary: Twelve people were killed and at least ten others seriously injured when a bus carrying Polish tourists veered off the road and overturned into a ditch in eastern Hungary early Sunday morning. The incident occurred along the M3 motorway near the town of Mezokeresztes, located approximately 140 kilometres east of Budapest, as the vehicle was travelling eastward toward Nyiregyhaza.
According to disaster management and police officials, the vehicle was carrying a total of 59 individuals, comprising 57 passengers and two drivers. The regional government in Rzeszow confirmed that the passengers were Polish nationals from southeastern Poland returning from a pilgrimage in Bosnia-Herzegovina. Emergency rescue personnel used heavy cranes to free individuals trapped beneath the wreckage and extricated several injured passengers through smashed windows.
Preliminary police assessments indicated that the driver likely fell asleep at the wheel before the bus left a straight stretch of the motorway. Hungarian authorities confirmed that the driver has been taken into custody as part of an ongoing criminal inquiry into the collision.
Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar and Polish President Karol Nawrocki both issued statements conveying deep sorrow and condolences to the bereaved families while acknowledging the rapid response of emergency personnel. Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski stated that diplomatic consular channels have been fully deployed on the ground to coordinate with Hungarian officials and assist hospitalized survivors.
