Bedburg-Hau (dpa / lnw) – In a serious bus accident on the Lower Rhine, five people were injured, 20 other people got away with the shock. The bus collided with an excavator in Bedburg-Hau near Kleve on Wednesday morning, the police and fire department said. The collision was so violent that the excavator fell on its side and the front of the bus was completely damaged.

When the first emergency services reached the scene of the accident, the seriously injured excavator driver had already been freed by first responders. The fire brigade had to free the trapped bus driver. Three other bus passengers were also taken to the hospital. The other parties involved were treated on site by the emergency services. The cause of the accident initially remained unclear.