Bus driver killed, 19 injured in Route 91 crash near Machanayim

A 61-year-old man was killed and 19 others injured Wednesday in a head-on collision between a bus and a truck on Route 91 near Machanayim Junction in northern Israel. Firefighters who responded to the scene extricated the bus driver, who had been trapped in the wreckage, and Magen David Adom paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene after he was found without a pulse or breathing.

The truck driver, a man in his 50s, was listed in serious condition and was evacuated by helicopter to hospital with injuries to his lower limbs. The remaining 18 injured, all in light condition, received initial medical treatment at the scene from MDA medics and paramedics before being evacuated to Ziv Hospital in Tzfat.

Chief Fire Officer Dror Bochanik, the incident commander, said: "This was a very serious traffic accident between a bus and a private vehicle. Firefighters worked to extricate a trapped person from the bus, and MDA teams pronounced his death at the scene. At the same time, medical personnel treated the injured at the scene, and one seriously injured person was evacuated by helicopter."

The accident scene on Route 91 (Photo: MDA operational documentation)

MDA emergency medical responder Gil Ad Ben Chamo added: "This was a shocking traffic accident. The vehicles had very severe frontal damage. The bus driver was trapped, unconscious, without a pulse and without breathing. During complex extrication operations we provided him with medical treatment, and then we were forced, to our sorrow, to pronounce his death at the scene."

"At the same time, additional MDA paramedics provided medical treatment to the truck driver, who was unconscious and suffering from a serious injury to his lower limbs. He was evacuated by MDA-Hatzalah Air helicopter to hospital while continuing medical treatment," he continued. "Eighteen injured who were on the bus were evacuated in MDA ambulances to hospital in light condition."

Following the serious accident, Route 91 was closed to traffic in all directions, and drivers were asked to avoid the area and use alternative routes. Police forces and traffic accident investigators are at the scene investigating the circumstances of the crash.