A 61-year-old bus driver was killed and 19 people were injured Wednesday when a passenger bus collided with a truck on Highway 91 near Mahanaim Junction in northern Israel. The truck driver, a man in his 50s, was seriously injured, while 18 bus passengers, all around 20 years old, sustained minor injuries.
Magen David Adom (MDA) paramedics attempted to resuscitate the bus driver, who was trapped inside the vehicle, but pronounced him dead at the scene. The truck driver, who suffered severe injuries to his lower limbs, was evacuated to a hospital by an MDA-Hatzolah Air helicopter. The 18 passengers were taken by ambulance to Ziv Medical Center in Safed.
Bus driver killed, 19 injured in truck collision in northern Israel
(Photo: Israel Fire and Rescue Authority)
MDA emergency medical technician Gil Ad Ben Hamo described extensive damage to the front sections of both vehicles.
"It was a horrific road accident. Both vehicles had sustained very severe damage to their front ends," he said. "The bus driver was trapped, unconscious, with no pulse and not breathing. We provided medical treatment during a complex rescue operation, but unfortunately, we had to pronounce him dead at the scene."
Police said officers and traffic accident investigators were examining the circumstances of the collision. Highway 91 was closed to traffic in both directions.