At least 21 people, including two children, have been killed after a bus crashed on a viaduct near Venice, northern Italy.

Authorities said the vehicle left the road and fell 30 meters before catching fire at around 7.45pm local time on Tuesday evening in the Mestre district, which is linked to Venice by a bridge.

According to the newspaper Il Corriere della Serathe bus reportedly caught fire when it came into contact with the electricity cables.

“A tragedy has struck our community tonight,” Mayor Luigi Brugnaro wrote on Facebook, calling the crash site “an apocalyptic scene.”

“According to the preliminary balance, at least 21 victims and more than 20 people have been hospitalized.many of whom are in serious condition,” announced Luca Zaia, governor of the Veneto region, of which Venice is the capital, lamenting “a tragedy of enormous proportions.”

“The accident also involved minors,” Zaia added on Facebook, while “the extraction and identification work of the bodies continues.”

Many of the people on board the bus had Ukrainian passports and were heading to a camp where they were staying. German and possibly Bulgarian tourists are also believed to have been among the victims.

Additionally, theories emerged that the bus driver had suffered a “medical episode” seconds before the tragedy.

Venice police chief Marco Agostini told local media: “There appear to be no skid marks on the asphalt, so the theory of a medical episode is a possibility.”.

Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi said that “the factor that aggravated the situation was the use of methane, which is why the fire spread quickly.”

“The balance is tragic and dramatic and I fear it will become even greater“, he added on the public channel’s television news Rai1.

Five hospitals in the areas of Mestre, Treviño, Dolo, Mirano and Padova have been placed in a state of emergency and the emergency rooms are empty. An urgent appeal was made for blood donors.

“I heard hard braking, I thought it was a train. Then there was the sound of a crash, a dull thud. I was shocked and when I looked I saw smoke and heard people screaming for help. As I ran and got to where I could see the bus, the screaming turned into a terrible, deathly silence that stopped my blood.said a witness, who identified himself as Leonardo

“I wanted to help, but a friend of mine and a policewoman stopped me because the bus was still on fire and there was a risk of explosion. Then I stayed there until help arrived, which arrived after about twenty minutes,” the man added in detail. Daily email.

Forty ambulances were sent to the scene and the rail line to Venice was temporarily closed before reopening, but operator Trenitalia said services were subject to long delays and cancellations.

“The bus was completely crushed. The fire brigade had difficulty removing many bodies“The prefect of Venice, Michele Di Bari, told Sky Italia Television.

Rescuers were still removing the wreckage of the bus late Tuesday afternoon to ensure no more passengers were trapped on the bus.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her condolences and said in a statement that her government’s thoughts were with “the victims, their families and their friends”.

“I am in contact with Mayor Luigi Brugnaro and with Minister (of Transport) Matteo Salvini to monitor the information about this tragedy,” he said in a statement. (JO)