Tragic Bus Accident in Ain Department: Child and Student Killed, 29 Injured After Driver Falls Asleep

The town of Lent in the French department of Ain witnessed a tragic road accident on Friday morning after a passenger bus traveling between the cities of Lyon and Bourg-en-Bresse veered off the D22 departmental road at around 7:30 AM, violently colliding with several trees along the roadside. The disaster resulted in the deaths of two people and left 29 others injured to varying degrees.

Heavy Toll and Emergency Mobilization

The public prosecutor in Bourg-en-Bresse, Karine Malara, announced that the two fatalities were a 7-year-old girl of Bosnian nationality and an 18-year-old student from the city of Lyon. Four injured passengers were hospitalized in absolute emergency status, two of whom remain in critical, life-threatening condition, while 25 others sustained minor injuries. The bus, chartered by the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, was carrying 49 people on board, including 23 minors.

Emergency services rushed to the scene, mobilizing around one hundred firefighters and fifty gendarmes, supported by four helicopters and drones to evacuate the injured and coordinate rescue efforts. A psychological support unit was also established at the community hall in Lent to care for passengers and their families, amid widespread shock as reported by the local victims' support group (Avema-France victimes 01).

Driver's Confession and Preliminary Findings

The public prosecutor's office confirmed that the 26-year-old driver admitted while in police custody that he had fallen asleep at the wheel, a statement corroborated by initial passenger accounts. The driver reported suddenly waking up to find the bus crossing into the opposite lane before crashing into the trees. Medical screenings for alcohol and narcotics came back negative.

For his part, Minister of Transport Philippe Tabarot, who inspected the crash site, stated that the bus was in very good condition, equipped with a speed limiter set at 70 km/h. He noted that the driver had recently joined the company and had undergone a routine random check in mid-October that yielded negative results. Meanwhile, the mayor of Bourg-en-Bresse noted that the crash site features a slight slope and a gentle curve to the right.

Judicial Investigation and Timeline

National Gendarmerie units have taken charge of the investigation under charges of vehicular manslaughter. Investigators are currently focused on closely reconstructing the driver's schedule and legal rest periods; he had departed from Lyon around 5:30 AM and completed an earlier route before taking the wheel on the line bound for Bourg-en-Bresse. The prosecutor's office will review and scrutinize these details to uncover all circumstances surrounding the crash.