Eight reported injured as tour bus crashes into Luas in Smithfield
Eight people have been injured after a sightseeing bus collided with a tram in Dublin city centre.
The crash happened near Bow Street, on the red line, just before 11am when the tour bus hit one of the carriages on the tram.
Three people were taken to hospital, a spokeswoman for tram operator Luas said, including the tram driver, who was being checked by medics as a precaution.
Another four people were described as walking wounded and only required treatment at the scene.
The tram, which was travelling towards Tallaght, was not derailed in the incident near the Smithfield area.
Windows along one carriage are believed to have been smashed.
All Luas red line services between Blackhorse and the city centre were suspended following the crash while all other services to and from Saggart and Tallaght in and out of Blackhorse were running as normal.
The tram was driven from the scene of the accident to the depot at the Red Cow at about 12.30am.
"How it happened and the accountability for the accident at this stage has not been determined," a spokeswoman for the Luas said.
The bus involved in the accident was operated by Cityscape, a hop-on-hop-off sightseeing service.
Major front liner response to Luas and tour bus crash in Smithfield #luas pic.twitter.com/sqVNnU1v2q
— Gerry Curran (@gerrycurran) October 28, 2016
The front of the bus and driver's cab of the tram initially made contact before the Luas came to a halt about 30ft (9m) down the track.
The front bumper of the bus had been torn off.
Cityscape declined to comment.
It is understood the open-top bus was coming from Bow Street after stopping at the Jameson Distillery and making its way back to the north quays.
There are traffic lights at the junction.
Among the passengers on the tram was a woman with a baby in a buggy.
Jason Mac An tSionnaigh, owner of the Urbanity Coffee shop in Coke Lane, near the scene of the crash, said there was a lot of concern for the infant.
"I just missed the accident by about a minute," he said.
"When I arrived there were people still on board and some people on the ground.
"There was glass everywhere.
"But to be honest it seemed very well-organised. The driver of the bus, he was in a state of shock, but he was able to organise passengers, asking them if they were OK and apologising."
Mr Mac An tSionnaigh said a number of windows were broken on carriages and doors on the tram.
He praised the way the emergency services, including gardai, ambulance staff, paramedics and members of Dublin Fire Brigade, handled the response.
"It did not seem chaotic at all," he said.
