World

Train hits school minivan in Belgium, killing four including pupils

By Inti Landauro, Charlotte Van Campenhout and Bart Biesemans Reuters
A drone view shows emergency personnel working near the damaged school bus that was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans
A drone view shows emergency personnel working near the damaged school bus that was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans Bart Biesemans Reuters

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By Inti Landauro and Charlotte Van Campenhout

BUGGENHOUT, 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 kilometres (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.

(Reporting by Bart Biesemans, Inti Landauro and Charlotte Van Campenhout; editing by Richard Lough and Andrew Cawthorne)

A drone view shows emergency personnel working near the damaged school bus that was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans
A drone view shows emergency personnel working near the damaged school bus that was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans Bart Biesemans Reuters
Emergency personnel walk near the scene where a school bus was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans
Emergency personnel walk near the scene where a school bus was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans Bart Biesemans Reuters
Emergency vehicles operate near the scene where a school bus was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans
Emergency vehicles operate near the scene where a school bus was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans Bart Biesemans Reuters
Emergency vehicles operate near the scene where a school bus was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans
Emergency vehicles operate near the scene where a school bus was struck by a train at a level crossing leading to multiple casualities, near the town of Buggenhout, Belgium, May 26, 2026. REUTERS/Bart Biesemans Bart Biesemans Reuters

Copyright Reuters or USA Today Network via Reuters Connect.

This story was originally published May 26, 2026 at 12:33 PM.

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