35 Injured and Dead... Driver Booked for Israel Tourist Bus Overturn Accident

Police to Investigate Driver Negligence and Defects in Aging Vehicles

A bus driver involved in a traffic accident in Chungju, Chungbuk, which resulted in the death of one foreign passenger and injuries to 34 others, has been booked by the police.

On the 14th, the Chungju Police Station announced that they had booked tour bus driver A (69) without detention on charges of negligent homicide and injury under the Special Act on Traffic Accident Handling.

A is suspected of causing multiple casualties by overturning a tour bus while driving in Suanbo-myeon, Chungju-si, at around 6:05 p.m. the previous day.

At around 6:05 PM on the 13th, a tour bus overturned in Suanbo-myeon, Chungju-si, Chungbuk, injuring 35 passengers. / Provided by Chungbuk Fire Headquarters [Image source=Yonhap News]

As a result of the accident, a foreigner in their 60s with Israeli nationality was seriously injured and transported to a hospital but died. A, a Korean guide, and 32 tourists of the same nationality as the deceased sustained moderate to severe injuries and are receiving hospital treatment.

Most of the tourists were elderly, aged 60 or older, and are known to have entered Korea on the 6th after traveling through Russia using a domestic travel agency’s package tour.

During the police investigation, A reportedly stated, "The engine stalled while shifting the manual gear from 2nd to 1st, and then the bus rolled backward, causing the accident."

The road where the accident occurred is an S-shaped hill road with steep slopes and curves. According to the police, changing gears on such a road can cause the engine to stall, so it is generally safer to maintain 1st gear while driving.

The police also plan to check for any vehicle defects such as brake failure. The bus involved in the accident is a 2013 model and is identified as an old vehicle that has traveled 500,000 km.

On the same day, the police conducted a joint inspection with related agencies including the National Forensic Service headquarters, Chungbuk Police Agency, and the Korea Road Traffic Authority. The police plan to investigate the cause of the accident, keeping open various possibilities such as driver negligence and defects in the aged vehicle.

The police analyze that the damage was worsened because the passengers were not wearing seat belts. The accident occurred at the last curve section, and at the time of the accident, some tourists had unfastened their seat belts and were retrieving luggage from the luggage compartment just before arriving at the hotel, the police explained.