{
    "title": "Silent vigil for victims of school bus accident in Buggenhout",
    "modified_at": "2026-05-29 19:31:02",
    "published_at": "2026-05-29 19:31:00",
    "url": "https://www.belganewsagency.eu/silent-vigil-for-victims-of-school-bus-accident-in-buggenhout",
    "short_url": "http://prez.ly/tHHd",
    "culture": "en_BE",
    "language": "EN",
    "slug": "silent-vigil-for-victims-of-school-bus-accident-in-buggenhout",
    "body": "<p><strong>A silent vigil is being held on Friday evening in Buggenhout, East Flanders province, for the victims of Tuesday&rsquo;s school bus accident at the level crossing. At the start, around 7 pm, around a hundred people were present at the scene of the accident, which is being kept clear of traffic.</strong></p><p>Four people were killed in the collision at the closed level crossing. They were the 49-year-old driver of the minibus, a 27-year-old supervisor and two boys aged 15 and 12 from Bornem, Antwerp province. There were five more children on the bus &ndash; boys aged between 13 and 15 &ndash; who were seriously injured. All the children attended the Richtpunt Buggenhout campus for special needs education.</p><p>The silent vigil follows a call for people to attend on Facebook. White balloons are being released and, as in recent days, flowers and soft toys are being left at the crossing. </p><p>The municipality of Buggenhout is also organising an official commemorative event on Friday, 26 June, exactly one month after the accident.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><sup>#FlandersNewsService | A silent vigil for the victims of a school bus accident in Buggenhout &copy; BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK</sup></p><hr /><p><strong>Related news</strong></p><div id=\"bookmark-52d18676-1fc9-4d9f-b3c7-780bcb811007\"\n     class=\"release-content-bookmark release-content-bookmark--horizontal\">\n\n            <a class=\"release-content-bookmark__thumbnail\"\n           href=\"https://www.belganewsagency.eu/two-children-and-two-adults-killed-in-school-bus-crash\"\n           rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n           target=\"_blank\"           style=\"background-image: url(https://prezly.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fcdn.uc.assets.prezly.com%2Fb074ee36-29d3-4647-ae3c-5249860caa6e%2F-%2Fpreview%2F600x600%2F?ar=1%3A1&amp;fit=crop&amp;s=daf332ec7eca7dab2d85142e5ef33b85)\"\n        ></a>\n    \n    <div class=\"release-content-bookmark__details\">\n\n                    <a class=\"release-content-bookmark__title\"\n               href=\"https://www.belganewsagency.eu/two-children-and-two-adults-killed-in-school-bus-crash\"\n               rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"\n               target=\"_blank\"               data-type=\"bookmark\"\n               data-track=\"Story WebBookmark Click\"\n               data-placement=\"content\"\n               data-id=\"52d18676-1fc9-4d9f-b3c7-780bcb811007\"\n           >\n                Two children and two adults killed in school bus crash            </a>\n        \n                    <div class=\"release-content-bookmark__description\">\n                Two children aged 12 and 15 and two adults were killed when a school bus was hit by a train at a level crossing in Buggenhout, East Flanders, the...            </div>\n        \n        <a href=\"https://www.belganewsagency.eu/\"\n           target=\"_blank\"\n           rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"\n           class=\"release-content-bookmark__provider\"\n        >\n            <img class=\"release-content-bookmark__provider-icon\" src=\"https://avatars.prezly.com/favicon?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.belganewsagency.eu%2Ftwo-children-and-two-adults-killed-in-school-bus-crash&newsroom=6b71e247-a9ba-4732-aaa3-88be14c119db\" aria-hidden=\"true\" />\n            belganewsagency.eu        </a>\n    </div>\n</div>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>",
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    "links": [
        {
            "description": "Two children and two adults killed in school bus crash",
            "url": "https://www.belganewsagency.eu/two-children-and-two-adults-killed-in-school-bus-crash"
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    "author": {
        "first_name": "Flanders",
        "last_name": "News Service"
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