Seven dead after bus falls into river in St Petersburg
Seven individuals perished following a bus accident that resulted in the vehicle plunging into a river in St Petersburg, as confirmed by local authorities. The incident occurred on Friday afternoon on the Potseluev Bridge spanning the Moika River within the city’s historic center.
Video footage depicts the bus veering into oncoming traffic, colliding with two cars before breaching the bridge’s barrier and submerging into the water, sinking rapidly. Law enforcement has apprehended the bus driver, initiating a criminal inquiry into the crash’s cause.
The Russian investigative authority conveyed the updated fatality count via a statement on Telegram Friday evening, revising earlier reports from local authorities which initially indicated four individuals in critical condition and two seriously injured.
Approximately 20 passengers were believed to have been aboard during the incident, which unfolded as the bus driver lost control while navigating from Bolshaya Morskaya Street onto the bridge.
The Emergency Ministry disclosed that rescuers managed to extract nine individuals from the submerged bus, yet three succumbed shortly thereafter. Surveillance footage depicts bystanders leaping into the water in an attempt to aid passengers.
Russian accounts identify Idris Gadzhiev, Shahban Jabrailov, and Muhammad Hasanov among those who bravely entered the river to assist.
“We were driving to Friday prayers when we saw the bus falling into the river,” Mr Gadzhiev told the Fontanka website.
“We weren’t being heroes but just fulfilling our civic duty,” Mr Jabrailov said.
Footage later released by the authorities shows emergency services lifting the bus out of the river using heavy machinery.
The Emergency Ministry later said rescue operations had been completed.
The Potseluev Bridge is in the centre of St Petersburg, around 1.5km (0.9 miles) from the Hermitage Museum.