Passengers on a bus carrying a group from Levski say grain and broken glass poured over them in a pile-up on the Trakia motorway, and the doors would not open. The group was travelling to a sanatorium in Nesebar for treatment.
The crashes near Yambol happened on Tuesday, 10 November, in thick fog. Health minister Katya Ivkova said 11 people died and 46 injured people were taken to hospital, seven of them in Burgas.
Earlier on this story: 11 dead in crashes on Trakia motorway, seven of the injured in Burgas hospital
The group set off at 2am. The bus hit a Romanian lorry, and then a truck loaded with grain ploughed into its rear. Another passenger showed the wound she got when she hit the seat. She said the bus was struck six times from behind.
Grain and glass from the windows fell on the passengers. A former teacher with 30 years in the job said those who were awake gripped the seats, while those who were asleep fell into the aisle onto the grain, one on top of another.
The doors would not open. Young men on the bus broke a window, and one of them climbed out and opened the door, and they began to get people out. The second passenger said the shock was severe.
A witness from the bus saw two more vehicles near the Romanian lorry: a jeep in front and a car at the side, facing against the traffic.
Some of the group reached Nesebar, but the injured are still shaken. Dr Plamen Lakov said they had been through severe stress and it will inevitably affect them.
Two days after the crash, the former teacher is still finding grain and glass in her luggage and pockets. She keeps them in her bag, but will probably throw them away because they bring back bad memories.