Croatian Diver Says Malta Crash Rescue Was Hardest Of His Career
A Croatian diver with over 30 years of experience has described Thursday’s fatal car accident that killed four Maltese tourists as the most difficult intervention of his career.
Renato Huba was one of the first to arrive at the scene in Bunica, near Senj, and helped recover the car and remains. “I prepared myself for the worst situation, but that was not enough; this was much worse,” Huba told Croatian newsroom.
“The tragedy is great; four human lives were lost. It was horrible. Their items were scattered all over the place in the car, and we managed to pull out a lot of personal belongings. Cell phones, women’s glasses, and a lot of snacks.”
The accident happened around 4.20pm on Thursday on the D8 state road. The car, travelling from Rijeka towards Senj, is believed to have lost control on a left bend, veered to the right, struck two stone barriers, plunged about 70 metres down a ravine, and ended up in the sea.
Huba described the operation to recover the sunken vehicle as challenging: “I expected it to be bad, but not this bad.”
Police officer Jasmin Mujaković was among the first responders. Witnesses said he removed his uniform and jumped into the cold water, diving to a depth of 16 metres to try to open the car door.
Adrian Karamba from the towing service said: “He tried everything he could. He jumped, dived, tried to open the door, but due to the extensive damage and the strong water pressure, it was simply not possible. He did his best.” Mujaković declined to comment to the media.
Lovin Malta is withholding the names of the victims until all families have been informed.
Photo credits to 24Sata
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