Canary Islands bus crash latest: British pensioner, 77, dies and 27 injured after tourist bus plunges into ravinenewsline24

A British man died after a bus carrying UK tourists crashed down a ravine in La Gomera yesterday.

The 77-year-old, who has not yet been identified, is one of 27 British passengers understood to be travelling to to the San Sebastián de La Gomera dock where they were due to travel by ferry to Tenerife.

A 73 and 42 year old man, who suffered severe injuries, were helicoptered to a hospital in Tenerife, while another person on the bus is also in critical condition.

The other 23 passengers, all believed to be British, were taken to the hospital on the island. Of these, 21 have now been discharged, authorities said.

Police have said they are investigating whether a brake failure caused the bus to come off the road, after the driver noticed an issue with braking and “tried to⁠ ⁠fight”.

The British government said it was supporting the family of the man who died.

Foreign secretary Yvette Cooper wrote on X: “My thoughts are with those affected by the tragic incident involving a bus carrying British holidaymakers in the Canary Islands.

“We are in touch with the local authorities & ready to support Brits & their families.”

A 77-year-old British man has died after a tourist bus crashed into a ravine in the Canary Islands on Friday.

The man has not yet been identified.

A foreign office spokesperson said: “We are supporting the family of a British man who died in the bus accident in the Canary Islands and are in contact with the local authorities.”

The Independent’s travel correspondent, Simon Calder, has provided background on La Gomera:

This was a horrific accident on a beautiful island. La Gomera is not a mainstream destination for British travellers. It’s a small and mountainous isle to the west of the biggest Canary Island, Tenerife. The resident population of around 23,000 compares with almost a million on Tenerife.

Unlike most of the Canary Islands, La Gomera has no international airport. Many of the people who spend time there are hikers – especially British and German.

But there are also day trips run from the big resorts at the south western end of Tenerife including Costa Adeje, Las Americas and Los Cristianos – which is the departure point from the ferry.

The voyage takes about an hour, and is followed by a coach tour of the scenic locations as well as a stop for lunch.

These trips have been operating for many years without incident. But inevitably in a location with narrow mountain roads, the risks are higher than in flat terrain.

After a bus full of British tourists veered off the road on Friday, the Canary Islands emergency and security coordination centre received an alert informing them of the crash.

The emergency service said it activated the necessary emergency resources and deployed two medical helicopters, one medical ambulance, two basic life support ambulances, and two non-urgent health transport units.

Health services assessed those injured at the scene and transferred several of them to the hospital.

Red Cross and civil protection units were also in attendance and took those with less severe injuries to the hospital.

A 73 and 42 year old man were among those seriously injured in the deadly bus crash in La Gomera on Friday and were transferred to the island’s Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe Hospital before being flown to the hospitals in Tenerife.

Police investigating the bus crash in La Gomera suspect that a brake failure could have caused the coach to come off the road.

Juan Luis Navarro, the island director of⁠ ⁠the general state administration, told journalists that the driver detected a problem with braking and “tried to⁠ ⁠fight” it, local media reported.

The bus then came off the road and rolled down the slope, he said.

“Fortunately, it stopped before being thrown off the road. Otherwise it could have been much more serious.”

The Independent’s travel correspondent, Simon Calder, has provided background on La Gomera:

This was a horrific accident on a beautiful island. La Gomera is not a mainstream destination for British travellers. It’s a small and mountainous isle to the west of the biggest Canary Island, Tenerife. The resident population of around 23,000 compares with almost a million on Tenerife.

Unlike most of the Canary Islands, La Gomera has no international airport. Many of the people who spend time there are hikers – especially British and German.

But there are also day trips run from the big resorts at the south western end of Tenerife including Costa Adeje, Las Americas and Los Cristianos – which is the departure point from the ferry.

The voyage takes about an hour, and is followed by a coach tour of the scenic locations as well as a stop for lunch.

These trips have been operating for many years without incident. But inevitably in a location with narrow mountain roads, the risks are higher than in flat terrain.

The British tourists involved in the deadly bus crash in La Gomera were on their way to the airport to return to the UK, tour operator Holiday Property Bond has said.

It is understood that all passengers on the bus were British, including the man who died.

Another four tourists are in serious condition and are being treated in hospital.