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Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and is published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Twelve people have died after a bus carrying Polish pilgrims from Medjugorje in Bosnia and Herzegovina back to Poland crashed on a motorway in Hungary. Initial findings indicate that the cause of the accident was the driver of the coach falling asleep.
Political leaders in both Poland and Hungary have offered condolences to the families of the victims, while the Polish foreign ministry has set up a special helpline for those affected.
BREAKING: 12 people have been killed after a Polish tourist bus crashed on a motorway in Hungary https://t.co/PAiZ4D1jU3
📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/yxW9tBN5bw
— Sky News (@SkyNews) August 16, 2026
The accident occurred at around 1 a.m. local time on the night of Saturday to Sunday on the M3 motorway in Hungary. Later on Sunday morning, Hungarian Prime Minister Magyar Péter confirmed that 12 people had died and at least 10 were seriously injured.
According to information from the Hungarian emergency services, 57 passengers and two drivers had been on the bus. “The driver probably fell asleep at the wheel”, resulting in the vehicle veering off the road and into a ditch, said police in a statement quoted by Polsat News.
Polsat reports that the group is from around Strzyżów, a town in southeastern Poland. The owner of the local company that had been transporting them told Business Insider Polska that the coach “was driven by two experienced drivers”.
Twelve people lost their lives and at least ten were seriously injured overnight when a bus carrying Polish tourists overturned and went off the road into a ditch on the M3 motorway. My sincere condolences to the families of the victims.
I am grateful to all those who took part…— Magyar Péter (Ne féljetek) (@magyarpeterMP) August 16, 2026
Polish media outlets reported that the group in the bus were pilgrims on their way back to Poland from Medjugorje, which is a popular destination for Catholic pilgrimages due to a series of reported visions of the Virgin Mary that have occurred there.
Polish foreign ministry spokesman Maciej Wewiór later confirmed to broadcaster TVN that “everything indicates they were returning from Medjugorje”. The authorities in Podkarpackie, the province of Poland where the group was from, also reported that they were pilgrims returning from Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The accident on Sunday morning took place just after the end of celebrations of the Assumption of Mary on Saturday, which had included the unveiling in Poland of Europe’s tallest statue of Mary.
Poland’s president, Karol Nawrocki, issued a statement on Sunday morning expressing his “deep sorrow…in the face of this unimaginable tragedy” and offering “prayer and profound compassion for the families and loved ones of the victims”.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk likewise expressed his “deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims” and thanked the Hungarian emergency services for undertaking the rescue operation.
Andrii Sybiha, the foreign minister of Ukraine, which borders both Poland and Hungary, also offered his “heartfelt condolences” and said that “Ukraine stands in solidarity with the friendly Polish people and shares their grief”.
The Polish embassy in Budapest has set up a special helpline for family members and loved ones of those involved in the crash.
Notes from Poland is run by a small editorial team and published by an independent, non-profit foundation that is funded through donations from our readers. We cannot do what we do without your support.
Main image credit: Sky News (screenshot)
Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.
