4 Killed After Train Hits School Bus on Railroad Crossing

A devastating crash in Belgium has left four people dead, including two children, after a train slammed into a school bus at a railroad crossing.

The tragedy happened Tuesday morning, May 26, in Buggenhout, a town about 15 miles northwest of Brussels.

According to reports, the school bus was near the town’s train station when it was struck at a railroad crossing. There were nine people on board at the time: the driver, a chaperone, and seven children believed to be middle school and high school age.

Belgium’s transport minister, Jean-Luc Crucke, first confirmed that four people had died.

A spokesperson for the public prosecutor later said the victims were two students, ages 12 and 15, the 49-year-old bus driver, and a 27-year-old chaperone.

Five other students were taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Officials said they were in critical but stable condition.

The students were reportedly on their way to Richtpunt campus Buggenhout, a special education school located less than a mile from the crossing where the crash happened.

Authorities are now trying to understand how the school bus ended up in the path of the train.

Thomas Baeken, a spokesperson for rail track operator Infrabel, told local outlet VRT NWS that the collision happened at 8:08 a.m.

He said footage showed the crossing barriers were down and the traffic lights were red at the time of the crash.

“We do not know how the accident could have happened,” Baeken said.

He added that the train was already braking and that the train driver used the emergency brake, but could not stop in time to avoid hitting the bus.

“The train driver did apply the emergency brake, but was unable to avoid a collision,” Baeken said.

Officials said there were about 100 passengers on the train. No train passengers were killed, though one person was taken to the hospital for shock.

Train service in the area was disrupted after the crash, with some trains canceled and replacement buses put into service.

The crash has shaken Belgium and left the local community in mourning.

Buggenhout Mayor Geert Hermans said the town had been “hit hard” by the tragedy and thanked emergency workers for their efforts at the scene.

Transport Minister Crucke said his first thoughts were with the victims, the injured, and their families.

Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever also reacted to the horror, writing that he was “deeply moved” by the crash and that his thoughts were with the affected families.

Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said he learned of the crash “with great dismay” and wished strength to the injured and the victims’ loved ones.

Matthias Diependaele, president of the Flanders region, thanked emergency crews and said his thoughts were with everyone affected.

The tragedy also drew condolences from Ursula von der Leyen, the Belgium-born president of the European Commission.

“I was heartbroken to learn of the tragic accident between a train and a school bus in Buggenhout today,” she wrote. “My deepest condolences go out to the victims’ families and their loved ones. Today, Europe grieves with Belgium.”

For the families involved, a normal school morning turned into an unimaginable nightmare.