Alpe d'Huez, picture credit NUTS.fr)
A coach that was collecting a tour operator's staff from several resorts in the French Alps has crashed near to Alpe d'Huez, killing the 64 year old driver and reportedly leaving four people still in hospital, three of them seriously injured.
The coach, which some reports say was towing a trailer, is reported to have been travelling on the notoriously steep sole Alpe d'Huez access road, which it left towards the bottom of the hill, having already negotiated more than 20 hairpin bends, colliding with rocks and then bursting in to flame. No other vehicle was involved. The bus was destroyed by the ensuing fire with passengers jumping to safety where they could. More than 100 fire fighters and other emergency services attended the incident according to reports.
Some reports have suggested that the accident was caused by brake failure and that the driver shouted to warn passengers moments before the accident that there was a mechanical failure, however a SkiBound statement says this is not yet confirmed,
"The exact cause of the accident is as yet not known and we must await the report from the accident investigation team and local authorities in France before any comment can be made. We have made arrangements for an independent safety specialist to be sent to the scene to support the investigation."
Of the other people on the coach, who were rescued by a fleet of three helicopters, 25 who were initially taken to hospital for observation have now been released and 23 escaped the crash without requiring hospitalisation.
The coach was hired by Brighton-based schools ski operator Skibound, who have been in business for 28 years, to bring its staff back to the UK at the end of the season. Everyone from the bus are reported to have gathered with Ski Bound management and police in a local hotel and the company is making plans for those able to travel to fly home, and for relatives of those still in hospital to fly to France.
The coach, which had two drivers, was hired from a company based in Sunderland and had begun collecting staff from Serre Chevalier and had planned to return through the UK dropping staff at points throughout England ending in Newcastle.
"At the moment, our thoughts are with those who have been involved in the accident and we wish to extend our deepest sympathies to them and their relatives and friends," said the Skibound statement, which also thanks the British consulate and French emergency services.