A close call occurred yesterday on Rijeka's Brašćine streets when a city bus from line 4, without a driver or passengers, unexpectedly started and slid uncontrolled down Drenovski put.

The incident happened after the bus driver parked at the initial stop heading towards the city center and briefly exited the vehicle. In that moment, the bus began to slide down the steep street, traveling about 200 meters in uncontrolled motion.

During its descent, the bus hit a roadside guardrail, damaged a wall and the door of a family home, and finally stopped after crashing through a stone wall and toppling two large trees, according to Novi list.

“Without the Trees, It Would Have Ended in the House”

Ankica Trebo, the homeowner where the bus finally stopped, described the scene as terrifying.

“We heard a terrible crash, like thunder. When we went outside, we saw the bus in the courtyard. It knocked over a mulberry tree and a century-old palm. If it hadn't hit the trees, it would have likely ended up in the house,” she recounted, visibly shaken.

She added that the greatest relief was that no one was walking down the street at the time.

“Children play here, people and cars pass through. I don't want to think about what could have happened,” she said.

Residents Warned for Years

Residents claim this is not the first incident of its kind on this street. Josip Rupčić, the President of the Local Council of Brašćine-Pulac, stated that they had requested rerouting and a turnaround area after a previous incident.

“The street is narrow, steep, and one-way, with no bus stops. We requested that buses no longer travel here, but the proposal was not accepted at the time,” Rupčić said.

The bus remained partially hanging between the street and the courtyard after the accident, making its removal from the narrow and steep street particularly challenging.