4 killed after train collides with school minivan in Belgium

A train crashed into a school minivan at a level-crossing in the Belgian town of Buggenhout on Tuesday, killing four people including two special needs pupils, authorities said.

As well as the 12- and 15-year-old students, the crash killed the driver aged 49 and a female chaperone aged 27, said the local prosecutor's office which opened an investigation.

"What could have been a beautiful spring morning suddenly turned into a pitch-black day," East Flanders Provincial Deputy Kurt Moens told news outlet VRT NWS.

At the scene, a white minivan lay on its side near the track, its front badly crumpled.

Police spokesperson An Berger said the crossing's safety barriers were down when the accident happened. It was unclear how the van got through the barriers and into the path of the train, whose 100-odd passengers did not suffer any major injuries.

"The van came from Kerkhofstraat, a road running parallel to the railway line, and turned left toward Vierhuizen, crossing the railway at a point that was closed at the time. The van was hit by an oncoming train," Berger said.

PAST ACCIDENTS

The accident occurred early on Tuesday near Buggenhout station, about 23 km (14 miles) north of Brussels, when the vehicle was carrying seven pupils to their school.

A spokesperson for the state railway infrastructure operator, Infrabel, said that the train driver had applied the emergency brakes but that "the shock was extremely violent."

Local transport operator De Lijn said the vehicle, operated through a sub-contractor, had no mechanical issues and the driver was medically fit, was fully trained and had a clean record.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen offered condolences on X: "Today, Europe grieves with Belgium."

Belgium, where a dense railway network criss-crosses towns and villages, has a history of accidents at level-crossings.

Since 2021, 36 people have died in 168 such accidents, according to Infrabel's website.