At Least 10 Dead, Dozens Hurt in Bus Crash in Germany

At least 10 people were killed and more than 50 hurt on Saturday as a coach carrying Polish holidaymakers collided with another Polish minibus near the eastern German city of Dresden, police said.

The crash happened in the early hours of Saturday morning on the A4 motorway that links Poland and Germany, with police initially putting the death toll at nine killed and 43 injured.

Police said that passengers were killed in both the smaller minibus and the double-decker coach.

Seven of the people killed have been identified as Polish nationals while the more than 50 injured have been rushed to nearby hospitals, police said.

According to early indications, the Polish coach crashed into a Ukrainian coach in front of it, skidding across the motorway and before colliding with the Polish minibus, which was travelling in the other direction.

A report in the Bild daily said that the crash, which occurred around 2:00 am, happened after the driver of the Polish coach fell asleep at the wheel, but a police spokesman could not confirm the report, saying that authorities did not yet know the cause of the accident.

According to Polish travel company Sindbad, which operates the coach, there were 65 passengers on board and three crew. The majority were Polish.