Italy coach crash: rescuers work through the night to free survivors and take away the dead

Rescuers worked in darkness to pull about 11 survivors – reported to be seriously injured - from the wreckage of the bus under the viaduct in Monteforte Irpino in the Campania region. But they were also recovering corpses which they lined up under white sheets.

The crash occurred on the A16 motorway in the province of Avellino. About 48 passengers were thought to be on board the bus.

Early reports suggested the bus was carrying pilgrims back from the shrine of Padre Pio in San Giovanni Rotondo in Puglia. Later reports said they were on their way back from a holiday. Many of the victims were reportedly from the town of Giugliano in Campania.

Rescue workers on the viaduct above rushed to secure loose pieces of shattered concrete from the barrier which threatened to fall onto the bus as the first attempts to find survivors got underway below in the dark.

Eyewitness reports quoted by Sky Italia suggested the bus was travelling at a normal speed as it entered the flyover when a tire blew. The bus reportedly struck other vehicles, injuring their occupants, before the bus driver steered into the concrete barrier to avoid any further collisions, only for the barrier to give way. Other reports suggested the bus had suffered a brake failure as it entered the flyover.

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