Four helicopters on the scene

Car Collides with School Bus: Four Helicopters on the Scene

The school bus was severely damaged in the accident(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / CHRISTIAN DOMS, Krone KREATIV)

A major emergency response has been underway since 12:10 p.m. in St. Marienkirchen am Hausruck in Upper Austria. According to initial reports, a truck and a nine-seat kindergarten bus collided. Three fire departments, six ambulances, an emergency physician, and four rescue helicopters are on the scene. Four children were injured, some seriously; one is in critical condition. Two adults were also injured, some seriously. 

At 12:10 p.m., the Geiersberg-Pramerdorf Fire Department, the Hohenzell Fire Department, and the Sankt Marienkirchen am Hausruck Fire Department were alerted. So far, it is only known that a truck and a minibus carrying children apparently collided. According to initial reports, there are five seriously injured people and one person with minor injuries. Specifically, two adults—the driver of the kindergarten bus and the caregiver—as well as four children were injured, one of whom is in critical condition. 

Incidents like this, involving seriously injured young children, are always very stressful. 

Abschnittsfeuerwehrkommandant Jürgen Bauchinger 

Bild: BFKDO Ried

We spoke with Jürgen Bauchinger, section fire chief for the Ried district: “I live just three hundred meters away. The first alarm came in at 12:06 p.m. I drove there immediately. It was terrible: two children and the driver were outside; two other children and the caregiver were inside the vehicle. The caregiver was trapped. The kindergarten bus had left St. Marienkirchen and was heading toward Ötzling. The whole thing happened at an intersection that’s actually quite visible.”

The truck had struck the kindergarten bus on the side.(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / CHRISTIAN DOMS, Krone KREATIV)

Crisis intervention team was on the scene
Since passersby were already tending to the injured, Bauchinger coordinated the fire department’s response: “Little by little, the victims’ relatives also arrived at the scene. They were assisted by the crisis intervention team. Incidents like this involving young children aren’t easy for us firefighters either. We’ll definitely hold a debriefing.”