Polish bus crash in Germany. 56 injured, 34 in hospitals

According to German media, some passengers were able to get out of the bus on their own. Fürstenwalde fire service said the accident also involved a truck and a tanker.

The accident took place around 12:30 p.m. at the A12 highway, some 50 kilometers from the Polish border.

Footage of the accident has been published by the Słubice24 portal.

"The bus has Polish license plates, but we don't yet know who is the operator," Polish Consul to Germany Marcin Król told TVN24 around 2:30 p.m.

"Preliminary reports speak of 56 injured, including 2-3 people more severely injured," he said, adding that the German side "often qualifies people with ordinary fractures as severely injured, so it does not mean their life is in danger". He also said there were no reports of any casualties.

"We don't really know how many people with Polish citizenship were on board, that hasn't been verified yet," the consul added. He also explained that the accident had happened near Storkow, which is more or less half way between Świecko and Berlin, and that the road was closed in both directions.

Poland's Health Minister Adam Niedzielski informed later on Tuesday that 34 out of the 56 injured were taken to hospitals in Germany. "Those are three hospitals, one in Frankfurt an der Oder," he added.

"Our services are of course in full alert, but we also have information that the rescue operatoin on the German side is going so swiftly that there is absolutely no need for support from the Polish side," Niedzielski said.

A special hotline has been launched in Poland for relatives of the passengers of the Polish bus: 47 79 11 124.

Polish Main Police Headquarters spokesperson Mariusz Ciarka said Polish police officers were dispatched to the scene to support the rescue operation.

"In Lubusz Voivodeship, a police situation room has been set up in order to coordinate and exchange information with the German side," he added.