Belgian authorities offer condolences to families of bus victims
- 12 years ago
In Belgium, parents arrive at a local school, desperate to find out if their child was among the victims of a bus crash that killed 28 people, mostly children.
Patrick Hoogmartens, the Bishop of Hasselt spoke with several of the parents.
SOUNDBITE: Bishop Of Hasselt, Patrick Hoogmartens saying (Dutch):
"They were ready to receive the youngsters this morning and now they've heard the news that they will not be coming back, and nobody knows what happened. The parents are feeling powerless. There are a lot of uncertainties."
The children were on an annual ski trip to Switzerland when their bus skidded into the side of a tunnel, killing at least 22 children, a teacher and several others.
Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo offered his condolences to the families.
SOUNDBITE: Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo saying (Dutch):
"We're all in shock. The king, the queen, the minister of defence, and myself have briefly met the families at the airport of Melsbroek to express our support."
Investigating prosecutor Olivier Elsig said it wasn't clear whether the students were wearing seatbelts.
SOUNDBITE: Olivier Elsig saying (French) :
"The impact was extremely violent and everything, seatbelts, seats and anything in this bus flew out of its place. So I cannot comment on the the seatbelt factor but I would say that common sense leads us to say that the seatbelt factor doesn't change anything."
Swiss authorities say it is too early to tell whether the crash was caused by a technical problem or human error.
Deborah Gembara, Reuters.
Patrick Hoogmartens, the Bishop of Hasselt spoke with several of the parents.
SOUNDBITE: Bishop Of Hasselt, Patrick Hoogmartens saying (Dutch):
"They were ready to receive the youngsters this morning and now they've heard the news that they will not be coming back, and nobody knows what happened. The parents are feeling powerless. There are a lot of uncertainties."
The children were on an annual ski trip to Switzerland when their bus skidded into the side of a tunnel, killing at least 22 children, a teacher and several others.
Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo offered his condolences to the families.
SOUNDBITE: Belgian Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo saying (Dutch):
"We're all in shock. The king, the queen, the minister of defence, and myself have briefly met the families at the airport of Melsbroek to express our support."
Investigating prosecutor Olivier Elsig said it wasn't clear whether the students were wearing seatbelts.
SOUNDBITE: Olivier Elsig saying (French) :
"The impact was extremely violent and everything, seatbelts, seats and anything in this bus flew out of its place. So I cannot comment on the the seatbelt factor but I would say that common sense leads us to say that the seatbelt factor doesn't change anything."
Swiss authorities say it is too early to tell whether the crash was caused by a technical problem or human error.
Deborah Gembara, Reuters.