National Day Of Mourning in Bulgaria After Yambol Coach Tradgedy

Whether and official day of mourning or not, today has been just that in Yambol. A sombre mood in town especially walking past the hospital this morning where the injured are recovering and seeing the Bakadjik hill where is actually happened in the distance. It is hard to keep a dry eye.

A national day of mourning has been declared on May 29, commemorating the 16 victims of the horrendous crash in the Bakadjik hills, near Yambol, a day earlier.

Bulgarian President Georgi Purvanov has cancelled all his meetings for several days, the presidency's press service said. Across the country, all administrative buildings will fly the national flag at half-mast.

The memorial service will and last laments be held at the Sveta Nedelia church in Sofia. The mourning in Yambol will last for three days.

The Cabinet has asked all Bulgarian citizens and political parties to abstain from any form of celebrations on this day and pay their respects to the victims of the disaster. All political parties said they would put their election campaigns on hold.

The accident that occurred early on May 28 at 9.20am, when an old bus ploughed into a group of tourists climbing the hill to participate in a fair on the Ascension feast day. The bus, a Bulgarian-made Chavdar model manufactured more than 30 years ago, reportedly had a mechanical malfunction, even though it had passed its annual check-up less than a month earlier.

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