Germany Rocked by Second School Bus Horror in Six Weeks as Bus Smashes Into House, Leaving Dozens Hurt

A school bus carrying around 20 children has smashed into a house in Germany, leaving multiple people injured in a terrifying morning crash just six weeks after another school bus slammed into a residential building.

The vehicle careered across a roundabout before striking a property in Bad Oldesloe, in the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein, at approximately 7:20am on Friday, 30 October. Emergency crews rushed to the scene as reports emerged of passengers trapped inside the wreckage.

Early reports indicated that around 20 people had been injured, with initial assessments suggesting that four were in life-threatening condition.

German news agency NEWS5 subsequently reported that four people had sustained serious injuries and another 16 had suffered minor injuries. The figures remained provisional.

Figures remained provisional as emergency personnel continued assessing casualties. The bus driver was also reportedly among those trapped following the collision.

Major Rescue Operation from Terrifying Morning Crash

The bus was travelling through the Sülzberg and Kurparkallee roundabout when it suddenly deviated from its intended route and struck a residential property.

Reports indicated that the vehicle also scraped a smaller car before crashing into the building. The impact caused substantial damage, with the bus reportedly entering the home's living room.

Firefighters, police officers and paramedics descended on the residential neighbourhood, where emergency services declared a mass-casualty incident.

Rescue teams worked to reach those unable to escape the damaged vehicle, while officers established a substantial cordon around the crash site. Children were among the casualties, although adults had also been travelling on the bus.

Engineers were also expected to examine the damaged house to determine whether the collision had compromised its structural stability.

Police launched an investigation into the circumstances of the accident, but no definitive explanation was announced in the immediate aftermath.

Second School Bus Smashes Into German Home in Six Weeks

The alarming incident follows another school bus disaster on 14 September in Völklingen-Geislautern, in Germany's Saarland region. That vehicle also struck residential buildings after unexpectedly moving from a stationary position, injuring 14 of its 19 occupants. Seven people sustained relatively minor injuries, while another seven were more seriously hurt.

In that accident, the 38-year-old female driver had stopped beside the road after encountering a problem with the vehicle. While she attempted to identify the malfunction, the bus began moving without her at the wheel. It subsequently struck several parked cars before colliding with the walls of two neighbouring properties.

An initial expert assessment of the September collision, released on 7 October, suggested a mechanical problem could have caused the bus to move despite its parking brake being correctly engaged. However, prosecutors stressed that an operating error had not been ruled out, leaving investigators to examine both possibilities.

The findings have not been linked to Friday's accident in Bad Oldesloe, where investigators have yet to determine the cause of the bus leaving the road. The two collisions occurred in different German states, but both involved vehicles transporting schoolchildren striking residential properties within a six-week period.

Police have not yet provided a final casualty count for Friday's collision. With emergency assessments still under way, the precise number of injured passengers and the full extent of the damage remain to be confirmed.