At least three people have died in a bus accident on the E10 in Hadsel, west of Narvik in northern Norway. There were 58 people on board the bus.

”Seeing such a large vehicle and knowing that there were many people inside was the worst thing I could imagine,” said Yngvar Gustavsen from the emergency services after arriving at the scene of the accident.

Major efforts with helicopter transports and rescue personnel on site prepared for the worst, as the bus was partially underwater.

”"So far, three people have died and four have been seriously injured. A total of 58 people were involved in the accident," said police chief of staff Bernt Are Eilertsen at a press conference hours after the serious accident occurred, according to public broadcaster NRK.

Some of the passengers have been evacuated to a nearby school.

Police said it was difficult to contact relatives of those involved because there were several foreign passengers and passenger lists were missing. On board were passengers from China, Singapore, India, Malaysia, the Netherlands, South Sudan, Norway and France.

The bus went off the road and ended up in a lake near the E10. According to the police, the bus is ”partly in the cold waters of Åsvatnet, near Raftsundet.”.

Nordland Hospital declared a disaster alert after the incident. A crisis organization and several emergency reception centers were established.

”"The hospital has issued a disaster warning and established a disaster response team," said Ida Kristin Dølmo, a communications officer at the hospital.

Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre calls the accident "a very serious situation with many people involved" and thanks the responsible authorities for the rescue effort:

”My thoughts are with everyone involved and affected.”

The accident was reported at 1:30 p.m. on Boxing Day. Severe storms have ravaged northern Norway in recent days. Several roads have been closed and ferry services have been canceled, reports Dagbladet.

Source: TT-DI.SE