Friday brought devastation to Seoul’s west side when a city bus spun out of control at a pedestrian-heavy intersection, smashing into 13 people and leaving two fighting for life. Emergency responders detailed the scope near Seodaemun Station as they managed the fallout.
Precisely at 1:15 PM, the bus deserted its path, ramming a vehicle, a two-wheeler, and walkers en route to a building facade. Onlookers fled amid the uproar, transforming a routine afternoon into terror.
The worst-off: a 50-year-old lady with leg bones shattered and a man around 30 with cranial bleeding. Joined by six peers, they fill hospital beds. The 50-year-old operator, battered himself, is slated for narcotics checks.
Intoxication seems absent per initial police scans, yet scrutiny intensifies. A spectator noted the bus’s linear motion until its wild pivot. The afflicted woman evoked battlefield blasts, bolting to safety.
Deploying 271 workers and 18 apparatus, teams secure and dismantle the site. Thorough probes seek the trigger behind the loss of control.
This unfolds against January 10’s icy nightmare in North Gyeongsang, where black ice spawned fatal highway chaos, ending five lives. Dawn crashes included a truck’s guardrail breach and drop, dooming the driver; a sedan wreck slaying four amid trailer suspicions; an SUV’s fiery truck tangle at 6:35 AM.
Morning’s toll: five gone, injuries aplenty, 20 vehicles in the fray. Roads blocked briefly. Experts finger black ice from precipitation, urging drivers to navigate winter perils with care.