16 killed after bus flips in Bulgaria

Police said the bus was carrying 33 pilgrims from the village of Bozhurishte and a driver on a weekend trip to a nearby Orthodox monastery.

a view of a bus that crashed and overturned, near the town of Svoge. (Photo | AP)

SOFIA: A doctor in Bulgaria says five people have life-threatening injuries after their tourist bus flipped over on a highway, an accident that police say killed at least 16 people and left 18 others injured.

Dr. Nikolay Gabrovski spoke Sunday from Sofia's emergency hospital.

Firefighters near the scene where a bus crashed and overturned, near the town of Svoge, Saturday, Aug. 25, 2018. Bulgaria's health minister says a tourist bus has flipped over on a highway near Sofia, the capital, killing at least 15 people.
(Photo | AP)

Police said the bus was carrying 33 pilgrims from the village of Bozhurishte and a driver on a weekend trip to a nearby Orthodox monastery. It overturned Saturday and dropped down on a side road below the highway about 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of Sofia, the capital.

Police said 13 people died at the scene, among them a 13-year-old boy, and three of the injured died in the hospital.

The government has declared Monday a national day of mourning for the bus victims.