OMM Newsroom
Eleven people were killed on Tuesday in a pile-up involving dozens of vehicles on a foggy motorway in eastern Bulgaria, AnewZ reported. Prime Minister Rumen Radev said the collision occurred in both directions of the motorway.
Fifty injured people were taken to hospital, according to the Interior Ministry.
The crash happened on the A1 motorway, which links the capital, Sofia, with the Black Sea city of Burgas. Footage broadcast by local media showed cars and trucks scattered across all six lanes; many were crushed, overturned or had left the road.
Police, firefighters and emergency medical teams were sent to the scene.
Interior Ministry Secretary-General Lyubomir Nikolov said fog was the likely cause of the crash. Speaking to journalists at the scene, he said it began with a collision between a bus and a truck on the lanes heading towards Burgas.
Todor Mishinev, chief inspector at the Yambol Regional Police Directorate, told Nova TV that some people remained trapped in their vehicles.
“The main priority at the moment is rescue operations. Once they are completed, procedural and investigative measures will follow,” he said.
Radev called the crash a “tragedy” in a statement issued during European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s visit to Bulgaria. He said he had sent aircraft to evacuate the injured and planned to travel to the scene.
Von der Leyen said she would end her visit early.
“I would like to express my deep condolences and pay tribute to the rescue teams,” she said.
