Middle East News
At least 20 tourists killed in Israeli bus accident (1st Lead)
Dec 16, 2008, 13:30 GMT
Tel Aviv - A bus carrying foreign tourists plunged into a gully near the Israeli resort of Eilat on Tuesday afternoon, killing at least 20 people, and injuring 28 others, rescue officials said.
Most of the injured were said to be in serious condition, and were evacuated to hospital in Eilat, on the shores of the Gulf of Aqaba.
Some 55 people were on the bus when the accident occurred and seven people were still unaccounted for.
The tourists, from East Europe, had just arrived in Israel and were on their way to the resort when the b us fell 80- metres into the wadi. It was not immediately clear why the bus left the road.
The vehicle lay on its side at the bottom of the gully, while rescue workers and first-aid personnel picked their way through the scattered belongings on the ground to evacuate the injured and clear the bodies.
Some 20 ambulances and three Israel Air Force helicopters were rushed to the scene and began evacuating the passengers to a hospital in Eilat.
Eilat's main hospital issued an emergency call for all vacationing doctors and nurses in the city to come help treat the wounded.
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