“I lost sight of my colleague before the Ebro bridge and I started to worry”

Alejandro López is the owner of the bus company that was involved in a deadly crash on Sunday, in which 14 people died and another 43 were injured near Freginals (Tarragona).

 “Today at 4am we left Valencia on our way to Plaza España in Barcelona,” explained López. The owner of the company was driving the bus in fourth place in the convoy.

“Before we crossed the bridge on the River Ebro I lost sight of my colleague, the one in fifth position. I couldn’t see him and I started to suspect,” he explained.

López stopped his coach at a service area and tried to contact the missing vehicle. “I knew that something had happened, because nobody picked up the phone until 15 minutes later, to tell me that there had been a fatal accident,” he explained.

“It was the last vehicle and unfortunately it will never reach its destination,” the company owner told EL PAÍS by telephone.

López decided at that point not to say anything to the rest of the passengers. “Most of the youngsters didn’t find out about the accident until we arrived in Barcelona,” he explained. “They only knew them by sight because friends always get into the same bus together.”

The company, Autocares Alejandro de Mollet, has for years provided service for Erasmus university exchange students. “When there is an event such as the Fallas, they get organized, make lists, and call me to tell me the number of seats they need,” he explained.

After arriving at Plaza España, López headed back to the site of the accident in Freginals.

English version by Simon Hunter.