Vučić on the tragedy in Novi Sad: I seek both political and criminal responsibility

(Patria) - "As president, I demand from the prosecutor's office in Novi Sad and the Government of Serbia that those responsible for what happened be prosecuted and severely punished. When I mentioned the Government, I seek both political and criminal responsibility," said the President of Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić.

"I only know that we haven't renovated that canopy for 60 years; when we renovated everything else, we didn't renovate it. Why? I don't know. Someone will hopefully provide answers," Vučić added.

He also said that those who designed and built it are particularly guilty.

"Maybe they didn't build it; those responsible are the ones whose duty was infrastructure, railways, transport infrastructure," said the President of Serbia.

Vučić stated that the canopy collapsed onto people who were nearby and that the latest information is that 14 people lost their lives.

"Of those, five have not yet been identified; eight are citizens of Serbia, and one person is from North Macedonia. On behalf of all citizens of Serbia, I wish to express my condolences to the families. It is difficult to speak tonight, difficult to say anything rational. In such moments, we must muster the strength to unite, help the families of the victims, and do everything in our power to minimize the damage and help people," he said.

The President of Serbia thanked the rescuers and said that we managed to show the heart and soul of the people in this tragedy.

"All of Serbia stood still, froze for a moment when the rescuers managed to pull out a young woman. The doctors were already ready to amputate her arm because it was pinned under concrete, but they managed to extract her with machinery. I saw tears of joy among the rescuers, and that shows how great they were," he emphasized.

We remind you that fourteen people died in the collapse of the canopy at the Novi Sad Railway Station.

Spokesperson for the Emergency Medical Service in Novi Sad, Zoran Krulj, stated that a young man had his leg amputated.

"An 18-year-old young man and girls aged 21 and 23 are seriously injured and in life-threatening condition following today's tragedy at the Novi Sad Railway Station. The 18-year-old had his leg amputated," said Krulj.

The Mayor of Novi Sad, Milan Đurić, stated that more than 30 people were injured.

Incidentally, there were benches under the canopy, and a large number of citizens were sitting on them at the time of the collapse. A day of mourning has been declared for Saturday across all of Serbia, and three days in Novi Sad.