A large-scale road accident in the Rivne region: the cause could be a malfunction of the transport

Law enforcement officers are considering several versions of the cause of the accident in the Rivne region, as a result of which 14 people died. Among them is a technical malfunction of vehicles.

Prosecutor of the Rivne region Andrii Rudnytskyi told about this at the briefing.

In addition, such versions as a punctured wheel of the truck, which caused it to cross into the oncoming lane and collide with a minibus, inattention of the driver, violation of traffic rules and other force majeure circumstances are being considered.

In order to verify these versions, the scene of the incident has already been inspected, and 18 examinations, including auto-technical and forensic examinations, have been appointed. During the forensic examination, it will be determined whether there was alcohol in the blood of the drivers of vehicles.

All 14 dead have already been identified — they are residents of the Khmelnytskyi and Rivne regions, aged from 20 to 67 years. The youngest victim of a road accident, a boy, turned six years old on July 4. His parents also died. Only a 57-year-old woman from Netishyn survived the accident. Doctors diagnosed her with a closed fracture of the forearm, a closed craniocerebral injury and contusions of the chest. There is no threat to her life.

The victim has already been interrogated by investigators. All she saw was a truck coming at the bus.

• On the afternoon of July 6, 2024, near the village of Verkhiv, Ostrozka community, Rivne district, a tanker truck crashed into a Mercedes Sprinter minibus, which was carrying people on the route Horodyshche — Rivne — Starokostyantyniv. The drivers of both vehicles, as well as 12 passengers of the minibus, died on the spot. Violation of traffic safety rules, which led to the death of people, is under investigation (Part 3 of Article 286 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine).