53 People Injured, 4 Critically, After 2 Buses Collide on Busy Tourist Street: Reports

At least 53 people are injured, with four in a critical condition, after two buses crashed into each other in Barcelona, according to reports. 

One bus collided with the back of a second bus on Avinguda Diagonal, near the famous Sagrada Familia landmark, causing the vehicle to mount the sidewalk and crash into a tree just after 3:00 p.m. on Monday, March 3, the regional outlet Catalan News and U.K. newspaper The Mirror reported.

One of the buses carried Italian students coming from the Spanish town Lloret de Mar. The other bus was transporting cruise ship passengers, according to Catalan News. 

A spokesperson for Autocares Julià, the bus company operating one of the coaches, confirmed that four people were critically injured in the crash and the vehicles were transporting British, German, and Italian tourists.

“They were on a cruise liner which had arrived in Barcelona earlier today and was due to leave in the next few hours. I don’t know whether there are any British tourists among the most seriously hurt. It is too early to say at this stage,” the spokesperson said, per The Mirror. 

The company spokesperson added to Catalan News that the incident took place “when their coach was parked in an authorized area for passenger drop-off and pick-up.”

The four critically injured included two minors who were boarding the bus and a pedestrian, Catalan News reported. The fourth person was reportedly trapped in one of the vehicles and had to be cut out.

The injured were transported to Hospital Clínic, Sant Pau hospital, Hospital del Mar and Vall d'Hebron hospital as well as Sant Joan de Déu children's hospital, per Catalan News. The outlet also reported that 12 people were unharmed in the incident.

Photos obtained by the outlets show emergency services, including local police and the fire department, arriving on the scene and tending to the victims. 

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Catalonian regional president Salvador Illa wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “Very concerned and awaiting the situation of the accident between two buses in Barcelona. I am in permanent contact with Mayor Jaume Collboni and the emergency services, whom I thank for their quick action. All my support to those affected."

The two buses were reportedly removed from the scene by 7:30 p.m. on Monday evening. 

PEOPLE has reached out to Autocares Julià and the regional government-run emergency response coordination center for comment but did not immediately receive a response.