Two Arrested Following Fatal Accident at Azad University; Possibility of Increased Casualties

The Tehran prosecutor announced the arrest of two individuals in connection with the fatal bus accident at the Islamic Azad University, and summoned two officials from the University of Science and Research to the prosecutor's office. As a result of the overturning of a bus in the internal area of the Science and Research unit of Azad University in Tehran, which occurred on Tuesday, January 4, ten people have died so far and 25 others are injured. Mojtaba Khaledi, the spokesperson for Iran's Emergency Organization, stated about the latest condition of the injured students: "The condition of six of these students is critical, and among them, three are in serious condition." Thus, there is still a high possibility of an increase in the number of casualties from this incident. According to Khaledi, of the 25 injured, 11 are in intensive care, while the others, who mostly have fractures, are hospitalized in regular wards. Initially, the cause of the accident was reported as the bus driver's "heart attack," but Mohammad Shahriari, the deputy prosecutor of Tehran and head of the criminal court, stated that after the autopsy of the driver, "no signs indicating a heart or brain attack were found." He announced that samples from the driver's heart and brain have been sent to the laboratory, adding that "the pathology test results will be announced within two to three weeks." According to the news agency Mizan, Abbas Jafari Dolatabadi, the Tehran prosecutor, also commented on the latest status of the case, stating: "Two individuals, including the transportation contractor and the university facilities manager, have been arrested, and two university officials have been summoned for explanations tomorrow." He did not mention the identities or positions of these two university officials and added: "The families of the deceased have not yet filed complaints." According to the Tehran prosecutor, the investigator of this case has ordered the formation of a seven-member expert committee to investigate the cause of the accident, the condition of the road, the bus, and the driver's insurance status. Previously, the Tehran and Suburbs Bus Company had announced in a statement that the bus involved in the accident at the Science and Research University was not under the supervision of this company. Following this incident, the president of Islamic Azad University ordered the formation of a special committee to follow up on this incident, and, according to IRNA, all classes at the Science and Research unit of Azad University have been canceled. Several high-ranking Iranian officials, including the Supreme Leader and the President, also expressed condolences to the families of the deceased students in statements. Hassan Rouhani, in his condolence message, urged the "relevant authorities" to "thoroughly investigate the cause of this incident and implement all necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of such accidents." The deputy of Tehran's traffic police also announced that the main cause of the bus overturning within the Science and Research University is under investigation by experts and "is likely to be announced by Thursday." Hassan Abadi stated that a bus carrying over 30 students "collided with a concrete wall along the mountainous route of the university for unspecified reasons and subsequently overturned," attributing possible causes to "driver imbalance, technical problems with the bus, or other factors." This is one of the few times that a bus carrying students has had an accident within the internal area of a university. In Iran, buses carrying students or schoolchildren have repeatedly had accidents during off-campus programs, resulting in a significant number of fatalities. In some school classes in Iran, due to a lack of safety, incidents have occurred, including a fire caused by an oil heater in Shinaabad Elementary School in 2012, which left two dead and 27 injured. At the end of December, four schoolgirls lost their lives in a fire at an elementary school in Zahedan. This class was heated with an oil lamp, and the incident occurred when one of the students' bag straps got caught in the lamp during recess. This incident has occurred while Qasem Ahmadi, the deputy head of the Education and Research Commission of the Parliament, states that two-thirds of the schools in the country need renovation and modernization.