A regularly scheduled bus traveling from Oslo’s main airport at Gardermoen to mountain communities in Sogn og Fjordane was struck head-on by a truck during the night, and then from the rear by another truck west of Hønefoss. Three persons on board the bus were killed, including its driver.
Two passengers on board the bus were also killed and three others injured. Norwegian Broadcsting (NRK) reported Tuesday morning that two of the injured passengers were pinned inside the wreckage, and were flown to Ullevål University Hospital in Oslo after finally being freed.
The collision occurred on the two-lane State Highway 7 near Veme in Sokna, Buskerud County just before midnight. NRK reported that a preliminary investigation into the cause of the crash indicates that the first truck swerved into the oncoming lane and hit the bus, which then was also hit by another truck driving behind it.
Both trucks were Norwegian-registered with drivers from Iceland. The driver of the first truck has been charged in the accident and police seized his driver’s license as part of their routine. Ole Kristian Bekkedal, operations leader for the local police, said there were no indications that any of the drivers were under the influence of drugs or alcohol and neither of the truck drivers was seriously injured.
“The roads were very slick in the area, but whether that caused the crash, it’s too early to say,” Bekkedal told NRK. A team from the national accident investigation board Havarikomisjon arrived on the scene during the night to begin its probe.
The Timeekspressen bus took the brunt of the damage. There were nine persons on board, with three passengers escaping serious injury. They were being cared for at a crisis center set up at the Comfort Hotel Ringerike in nearby Hønefoss.
newsinenglish.no/Nina Berglund
