Flixbus partner bus from Warsaw to Tallinn crashes into ditch on Via Baltica in Lithuania, passengers hospitalised
A Flixbus partner coach travelling from Warsaw to Tallinn left the road and ended up in a ditch near Marijampolė, Lithuania, in the early hours of Monday. Passengers were taken to two hospitals, and an investigation is underway.
The accident
A Scania bus operating the Warsaw–Tallinn route veered off the A5 Marijampolė–Kaunas road and into a ditch near the village of Rudiszkiai in the Marijampolė district. The accident occurred around 2:00–2:10 local time (1:00–1:10 in Poland) on the night of Sunday to Monday. Preliminary findings by Lithuanian police point to bad weather conditions as the cause of the crash.
Passengers and injuries
Accounts of the number of people on board differ. Lithuanian police stated the bus carried 20 passengers, citizens of Lithuania, Latvia, Finland, Ukraine, Estonia, and Poland. Flixbus, however, said in a statement that 25 passengers and two drivers were on the vehicle. The exact number of injured and the severity of their injuries are still being determined. All injured were transported to hospitals in Marijampolė and Vilkaviškis.
There were 25 passengers and two drivers on board. The passengers were taken to nearby hospitals in Vilkaviškis and Marijampolė. (...) At this moment we cannot provide information on the passengers' nationalities.
Response and investigation
Lithuanian police have opened an investigation under Article 281, paragraph 1 of the penal code, which concerns violations of road safety rules leading to bodily injury. Flixbus said it is cooperating with local services and its partner operator to establish the exact circumstances. The company has set up a dedicated hotline for passengers and their families, and additional information is available through its customer service office.
