The driver of a bus that veered off a highway in southern Spain, killing 20 pensioners and injuring 23, was charged today with manslaughter.
The driver, who was arrested after he ripped out the bus' speedometer, was released on a bail of 11,400 euros, police said.
Investigators said initial findings showed the driver, who came away from the accident unhurt, was speeding when the accident occurred on a highway near the village of Palma del Condado in the province of Huelva.
The bus - which belongs to a Barcelona transport company and was carrying a group of pensioners from Catalonia - was exceeding the speed limit by at least 15 kilometers per hour , investigators said.
One person who suffered major injuries in the crash died in hospital this afternoon, raising the death toll to 20.
Funeral services for 19 victims of the accident took place at La Palma del Condado's gymnasium attended by hundreds of mourners, regional leaders, and princess Elena, elder daughter of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia.
The regional government of Catalonia declared today a day of mourning in memory of the victims of the crash.
Bus safety was the topic of a nationwide debate in Spain in July last year, following the death of 28 people, most of them teenagers, on a bus trip to summer camp. Their bus had collided with a truck transporting livestock.
AFP