Five Dutch tourists die and 40 are injured in Swiss mountain coach crash
A tour bus carrying 45 Dutch travelers struck a guardrail near Susch in eastern Switzerland on Thursday, killing five elderly passengers and leaving ten hospitalized with serious or moderate injuries.
Victims and injuries in Graubünden
Five Dutch citizens died on Thursday when a tour coach crashed in the eastern Swiss canton of Graubünden. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs identified the victims as four women and one man, all aged over 70. The deceased include a 71-year-old woman from Haarlem, a 79-year-old woman from Rotterdam, an 80-year-old woman from Maastricht, a 75-year-old woman from the province of Noord-Brabant, and a 75-year-old man from the province of Groningen. A total of 40 passengers sustained injuries during the crash. According to the Graubünden cantonal police, three individuals suffered serious injuries and seven sustained moderate injuries, leaving ten people hospitalized across the region. A large number of other occupants suffered minor injuries during the incident.
- Woman from Haarlem
- 71 years
- Woman from Noord-Brabant
- 75 years
- Man from Groningen
- 75 years
- Woman from Rotterdam
- 79 years
- Woman from Maastricht
- 80 years
Roadworks and collision dynamics
The single-vehicle crash took place around 16:45 on Thursday along the Engadinerstrasse between Zernez and Susch. The vehicle was operating an excursion into Switzerland from a broader holiday package based in Austria, arranged by Dutch tour operator Oad. At the moment of the crash, 45 people, including the driver, were on board out of an overall travel group of 49 Dutch nationals. The bus entered a construction zone where only one lane was open to traffic, veered into a guardrail, and ended on its side in the ditch. A Swiss prosecutor indicated that the barrier pierced the bus, while investigators also examine passenger seatbelt compliance. Technical assessments noted that part of the permanent steel barrier had been removed and replaced by a temporary barrier, leaving the bus to collide directly with the exposed end of the fixed barrier structure. The Dutch travel trade association ANVR stated that the driver might have swerved to avoid a rock on the road, though police have not verified that scenario.
- Tour group departs the Netherlands for a multi-day trip to Austria
- Tour bus crashes into a guardrail in a roadworks zone near Susch
- Emergency crews commence salvage operations to recover the bus
- First repatriation coach carrying eight group members departs for the Netherlands
Repatriation and passenger assistance
Repatriation efforts commenced on Saturday morning under the coordination of Dutch emergency assistance center Eurocross. A relief bus carrying eight members of the tour group departed Austria for the Netherlands, transporting four travelers who had skipped the Swiss day trip and four injured passengers cleared for travel. Two other individuals organized their own journey home on Saturday. Several group members remained at the regional hotel, in part because personal identification documents were locked inside the bus while it underwent technical examination by police. Tour operator Oad assigned multiple drivers to the return bus to ensure a swift journey with minimal stops, while other travelers prepared to return by airplane. Consular staff from the Dutch embassies in Switzerland and Austria deployed to the area to support local officials and coordinate psychological care through Dutch victim support organizations upon arrival.
