BUGGENHOUT, Belgium – A train collided with a school minibus at a railway crossing in northern Belgium on Tuesday morning, killing four people including two children and injuring five others.
The crash occurred in Buggenhout, a municipality about 25km northwest of Brussels, when a commuter train struck a minibus carrying seven pupils from a school for children with learning disabilities.
The victims were two pupils aged 15 and 12, the driver (49) and a supervisor (27), according to Lisa De Wilde, a spokeswoman for the prosecutor’s office.
Five other children on board were taken to hospital with severe injuries but remained in stable condition. Their lives were not in danger, police spokeswoman An Berger said.
Belgium’s deputy prime minister Maxime Prevot confirmed the details on X, writing: “A tragic collision between a train and a school bus took place in Buggenhout this morning. Four people have been killed, including two children.”
Images from the scene in the Flanders region showed a badly damaged minibus lying on its side next to a railway line, with emergency workers’ tents set up around the site. The commuter train remained halted on the tracks as forensic teams examined the scene.
The cause of the crash remains unclear and an investigation has been opened, the public prosecutor’s office said.
Belgium’s Infrabel rail agency said footage from the scene showed the barriers at the crossing had been closed and a red light was showing at the time of the incident.
“The impact was extremely violent,” Infrabel spokesman Frederic Sacre told AFP, adding that the train was travelling at 120 kilometres per hour. “The minibus was thrown about 15 metres into a metal pylon.”
No one on the train was hurt.
Prime minister Bart De Wever posted on social media that his thoughts were with the affected families, whilst interior minister Bernard Quintin thanked emergency services for their work.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen posted online: “My deepest condolences go out to the victims’ families and their loved ones. Today, Europe grieves with Belgium.”
