Some 18 people among the 31 injured have been seriously injured after the bus crashed on the A4 motorway in Podvorec, about 50km north of the capital Zagreb. The most likely cause of the accident was the driver falling asleep, state broadcaster HRT reported. “All the victims are Polish citizens – we can confirm that at this point,” a spokesman for Poland’s foreign ministry told TVN24. “The bus has Warsaw license plates.” The passengers were traveling to Medjugorje, a Roman Catholic shrine in southern Bosnia, Croatian Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic said. Officials from the Polish embassy in Croatia went to the scene this morning, according to a spokesman for the Polish Foreign Ministry. Emergency services were deployed after the crash at around 5.40am. near Breznicki Hum, in the direction of Zagreb, the police announced. The investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing. The section of the road near the scene has been closed to traffic to enable the rescue of passengers. Image: Emergency services at the scene of the tragedy Photo: AP Image: The scene of the accident in Podvorec where at least 11 people were killed Pic: AP Medjugorje is claimed to be the site of a number of apparitions of the Virgin Mary, said to have been first seen by six local children in 1981. The village, located 12 miles (20 km) east of the Croatian border, is now a popular destination for followers of the Catholic faith. Croatia’s Minister of Foreign and European Affairs, Gordon Grlić Radman, expressed his condolences to the victims of the accident and wished the people a speedy recovery. “The Croatian people stand in solidarity with Poland and its citizens,” he tweeted.
