A 12-year-old Israeli girl died when a driverless bus rolled down a slope at a ski station in France’s eastern Savoie region overnight, local authorities said on Saturday.
Fourteen other Israeli tourists were on the bus in the town of Belleville and had just left their hotel to go to the airport when the accident occurred.
The others suffered slight injuries, and two people were taken to a hospital, according to Bruno Charlot, the deputy prefect in Albertville, the nearest large town.
The accident occurred shortly before 1:00 am (0000 GMT).
The tourists had just boarded the bus when the “driver got out of the vehicle following a technical incident,” Charlot told AFP.
“The bus then started to roll backwards, went down several metres over a very steep grassy slope and then tipped over and came to a halt when it hit a small stone building,” he said.
The girl ended up trapped underneath the bus.
Forty-five firefighters and 28 vehicles were involved in the rescue operation, emergency services said.
