A serious crash involving a Rede Expressos bus, a car, and an ambulance on the IP3 road near Canas de Santa Maria, Tondela (central Portugal), left one man dead and 31 people injured this Wednesday afternoon (August 20).
The victim, a 54-year-old man originally from Portugal but living in Switzerland, was reportedly driving the car on the wrong side of the road when it collided head-on with the bus on the Viseu–Coimbra stretch, according to Correio da Manhã tabloid newspaper. After the impact, the car spun out of control and struck an ambulance belonging to the Tondela Volunteer Firefighters, it adds.
Emergency services rushed to the scene in force, including firefighters from Tondela and Viseu. A medical helicopter was dispatched for a seriously injured passenger, but the victim died before transport. Other injured passengers were taken to hospital, while those unhurt were transferred to another bus along with their luggage.
The IP3 remains closed in both directions between Coimbra and Viseu as cleanup and investigations continue. The Rede Expressos bus had departed from Coimbra and was en route to Viseu at the time of the crash.
