Road repairs take place after the bus fire on Struma motorway

The traffic in the direction of Blagoevgrad at the 31st km of Struma Motorway will be restored at the earliest on Friday, the Road Infrastructure Agency announced on November 29.

Until then, the traffic from the road junction "Bosnek" to the road junction "Staro Selo" (from km 31 + 180 to km 32 + 952) for Blagoevgrad will be carried out in both directions in the lane in the direction of Sofia.

In the coming days and in suitable weather conditions, in the area of the road accident, the restriction systems will be replaced and the pavement damaged by the bus fire will be repaired.

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45 people, including 12 children, died after a bus crashed and caught fire on Struma motorway in western Bulgaria in the early hours on November 23.

The bus was registered in the Republic of North Macedonia and was carrying tourists, who were returning from a trip in Turkey to Skopje.

Seven people managed to break the windows of the bus and escape. They were taken to Pirogov emergency hospital in Sofia with injuries and burns..

Speaking at the accident site, Bulgarian caretaker Minister of Interior, Boyko Rashkov said the victims had been burned beyond recognition, describing it as a "terrifying scene".

The bus had been travelling as part of a convoy of four buses and had stopped off at a petrol station near Sofia shortly before the accident. The other buses, which were a few minutes ahead, returned to the Republic North Macedonia safely.