TW
0

A 26-year-old part-time lorry driver, apparently under the influence of alcohol and cocaine, was last night being held responsible for the death of a 37-year-old Bulgarian air hostess and seriously injuring her 30-year-old colleague.

Tragedy struck at 7.50am yesterday morning as the tow air hostesses, enjoying a short break on the island, were waiting to use the pedestrian crossing in front of the Club de Mar.

According to the police, as the lorry driver, exiting the docks, descended from the bridge and rounded the bend to join the Paseo Maritimo, he lost control of his load and his trailer jack-knifed into the two women before coming to rest on its side across the Andratx-bound dual carriage way.

The 37-year-old was crushed to death.
Her 30-year-old compatriot, who suffered serious multiple injuries, was rushed to Son Dureta hospital and underwent immediate surgery.
Sadly, surgeons could not save her right leg, which was amputated at the knee, and medical sources said that she had lost a lot of skin from her left foot which was crushed, suffered a fractured pelvis and multiple injuries to her body and head.

However, Son Dureta sources reported that the operation had gone “well” and that she came out of surgery at 3pm.
Yesterday evening she was “critical but stable and under observation.” The driver, who it was revealed last night has worked as a bus driver for the Palma EMT bus service since 2001 and was doing extra hours as a lorry driver, was found to have three times the permitted level of alcohol in his blood and later confessed to having had taken cocaine during the sea crossing to Palma from the mainland.

He has since been arrested and faces various charges including manslaughter and driving under the influence of alcohol.
The accident happened during rush hour and caused traffic jams along the Paseo Maritimo which tailed back over eight kilometres on to the Via Centura where traffic into Palma was also held up. By 10am, traffic along both sides of the Paseo Maritimo had returned to normal but it was not until mid-day that traffic through Palma was flowing as usual.

Eye witnesses were still in state of shock last night and first at the scene was a German nurse who comforted the seriously injured air hostess until the ambulance and paramedics arrived. She also managed to avert the victim's attention from her dead friend.