At least three people have lost their lives and another 16 have been injured this Thursday in Calgary, in the Canadian province of Alberta, after a serious accident in which a bus ended up engulfed in flames.
"Today we have intervened in a serious accident involving a fire in a public transport bus that has caused the death of three people and has left at least 16 injured," the municipal police reported in a post on social media in which it refers to an event "deeply distressing for both the directly affected individuals and the entire community."
The confirmation of the death of the three victims occurred at the scene of the accident, according to what the spokesperson for Calgary Emergency Services, Adam Loria, explained to the media. He detailed that, of the 16 injured, "ten have been transported to various hospitals" in the city, and "one of them is in critical condition."
One of the injured is the driver of one of the two buses involved, a vehicle that operated on liquefied natural gas. The firefighters had to extricate him, and according to the chief of the Calgary Fire Department, Steve Dongworth, he has suffered "serious injuries."
Dongworth added that the accident required the mobilization of seven fire service vehicles, in addition to an eighth "specialized in hazardous materials" with its corresponding team, due to the characteristics of the liquefied natural gas used as fuel by one of the buses.
According to the account presented to the media by Sergeant Andy Woodward, "one of the buses was traveling on Saddle Ridge Circle when it collided with a white vehicle; this, in turn, crashed into a black vehicle and subsequently ended up hitting a van-type truck." "The vehicle continued on its path and struck another bus, which was stopped at the stop and was already on fire. This second bus crossed the roadway and impacted two other vehicles," he continued.
"I have been in service for over 36 years and I believe this is, probably, the most complex scenario I have worked in regarding an accident of this type," the sergeant emphasized, stressing that "any scene like this, traumatic, is difficult for all emergency services, firefighters, paramedics, and police."