The six foreign tourists who were injured in a bus accident in Reykjadalur near Laugar in northeast Iceland on Wednesday are recovering. Those who were admitted to hospital in Akureyri will be sent by ambulance flights to France and Switzerland.
Landspítali, the national hospital in Reykjavík. Copyright: Icelandic Photo Agency.
The condition of the woman who was admitted to ICU in Reykjavík is no longer critical; she is now being cared for in a general hospital ward, RÚV reports.
According to RÚV, the brake system of the bus, which is 26-years old, overheated and failed when the accident occurred. There were no skid marks on the road.
The employees of the travel agency Ferdakompaníid, which organized the trip that came to an end with the bus accident in Reykjadalur in northeast Iceland on Wednesday, released a statement yesterday saying they were sorry about what happened.
“The bus had recently been inspected and had all required licenses. The bus driver is a professional driver with many years of experience and has taken all necessary tests. Neither the vehicle’s owner nor the driver had noticed anything peculiar regarding its engine, wheels or brake system before the accident occurred,” the statement reads, according to Morgunbladid.
Bertrand Jouanne, managing director of Ferdakompaníid, flew to Akureyri as soon as possible after the accident occurred to assist the passengers of the bus, along with other employees of the company.
Jouanne said he would like to thank emergency workers for their quick and professional reactions during the difficult circumstances.
Thórir Gardarsson, spokesperson for the company Allrahanda, the bus’s owner, told Morgunbladid it isn’t true that the bus’s brake system failed.
The incident was an accident, he said, where the driver lost control of the bus at the turn by the farm Einarsstadir, resulting in a rollover.
“The vehicle was inspected at the end of April this year and has since been driven 3,537 kilometers,” Gardarsson said. His company recently invested in the bus and intended to renovate it for highland trips next summer.
Allrahanda will inspect the bus and find out what caused the accident. Gardarsson iterated that as the owner of the bus, his company takes full responsibility for the accident.
Click here to read more about the accident.
