Public road accident

Tragedy struck in Northern Italy on Wednesday evening, March 26th, after a tour bus crashed through the bridge barriers of the Ponte Vittorio Emanuele I in central Turin, plunging into the Po River below.
Onlookers watched in horror as the full-size tour bus , which was headed to Milan to pick up a group of elementary school children for a school trip to Turin, seemed to run off course at Piazza Vittorio Veneto bridge, shortly after 6 p.m. on Wednesday, breaking guard rails on the bridge as it reversed backwards over the bridge’s side into the shallow river, resulting in the death of the driver, and the injury of three passersby.Eyewitnesses indicated that the bus driver seemed to be ‘reversing’ after he realized he had turned onto the wrong street, hitting three women passing by the massive vehicle and injuring them before it fell over the side of the bridge.Within minutes of the freak accident at Murazzi, a short distance from Turin’s historic center, firefighters, police, emergency rescue personnel, and divers were on the scene, frantically trying to rescue the driver while checking to see if any other passengers were onboard the tour bus.Thankfully, authorities have indicated that there were no passengers aboard the bus when it crashed through the bridge’s guard rails into the river. However, the bus driver, 63-year-old Nicola Di Carlo, was pronounced dead on the scene despite resuscitation attempts by rescuers.According to officials, the Ponte Vittorio Emanuele I connects Piazza Vittorio Veneto to Borgo Po and is a key commuting route in Turin, and authorities sealed off the bridge from oncoming traffic as rescuers worked swiftly at the accident site.However, witnesses have indicated that the driver was speeding before it plunged into the Po River, where rowers were said to have been the first on scene, pulling the unconscious driver from the bus. Authorities are considering that the driver may have had a medical episode that led to the accident.“I saw a bus going at crazy speed, it hit the stone balustrade, it remained balanced for a moment and then it fell. The vehicle also hit a lady, but only grazed her, without hurting her. We ran with the life jacket, in the meantime, some boys from a rowing club also arrived. We threw a hammer; they broke the window of the bus and pulled the driver out. It doesn't look like there were any other people on the bus," said Filippo Camedda, owner of Capodoglio, one of the Murazzi bars, who witnessed the whole scene."The boys from the rowing club tried to revive the driver for about half an hour, waiting for help. The first to arrive on the scene were the firefighters, who blocked the descent, then the ambulance arrived, but I fear the man didn't make it," Camedda continued.Mayor Stefano Lo Russo and Police Commander Roberto Mangiardi rushed to the scene, shocked to see the tour bus on its side in the River Po.A full investigation into the cause of the crash has been launched in hopes of determining whether the accident was due to mechanical failure, such as failed brakes, medical issues, or human error."The investigations are just beginning. The only objective thing we have are the videos from the cameras, both from the Police Headquarters and ours,” said Mayor Lo Russo.“From the examination of the cameras, you can see the bus arriving from Lungo Po Cadorna, turning right into Piazza Vittorio and approaching the first exedra. After that it begins a reverse maneuver at an angle of 45 degrees, therefore unusual for what is normal way of driving a vehicle, it crosses the entire interchange area of ​​the intersection, hits the balustrade of the Murazzi del Po and sinks with the rear part into the river, then resting on the left side of the vehicle,” he reported.The bus will be pulled from the river and undergo a meticulous investigation, while the coroner’s office will perform an autopsy to determine the driver’s cause of death before their final investigation report is released.