CNA Staff, Oct 6, 2023 / 10:20 am
Pope Francis this week extended his condolences and prayers for the victims of a deadly bus crash in Venice, Italy, the Vatican said in a bulletin on Thursday.
The Holy See Press Office said in a release that the Holy Father had dispatched a “telegram of condolence” to those who had been affected by the Tuesday crash, which occurred when a bus ran off an overpass in the Venetian borough of Mestre.
Authorities reported that the bus broke out in flames after crashing. At least 21 people were reported dead by Friday morning, with nearly as many injured.
In the telegram, addressed to Patriarch of Venice Francesco Moraglia, Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin said that “having learned of the serious road accident that occurred in Mestre, in which several people lost their lives, including children,” Francis asked Moraglia “to convey his affectionate proximity to the families of those who died so tragically.”