Guatemala bus crash kills at least 43

[WithoutYou]

Guatemala bus crash kills at least 43

A bus crash in northwestern Guatemala on Monday killed at least 43 people and injured dozens of others.

Jill Langlois September 9, 2013 17:48

The wreckage of a bus that plunged 230 feet after careening off a road in San Martin Jilotepeque, 40 miles west of Guatemala City, killing dozens of passengers. (Johan Ordonez/AFP/Getty Images)

A bus crash in northwestern Guatemala on Monday killed 43 people and injured at least 40 more, rescue workers said.

The bus plunged off a cliff and into a deep river canyon with around 90 people on board — even though its official capacity was just 54, according to a spokesman for the volunteer fire department cited by the Asociated Press.

At least three babies were among the dead.

More from GlobalPost: Drive-by shooting kills at least 11 in a rural town in Guatemala

The bus was heading from western Chimaltenango to the town of San Martin Jilotepeque, some 40 miles northwest of Guatemala City.

Local residents who rushed to the crash site helped rescuers pull victims from the wreckage.

"Some of the people were rescued with hydraulic equipment, and others were thrown (from the bus) at the time of the accident," said Mario Cruz, volunteer firefighter spokesman.

The cause of the crash is unknown, but the area around San Martin Jilotepeque is notorious for its winding dirt roads through steep mountains without guardrails or any other safety measures.

The mayor of San Martin Jilotepeque, Otto Vielman, told the AP that it appeared that the bus had hit a wall of rocks before plummeting more than 330 feet off the road.

Speeding and carrying excessive passengers and cargo are the principal theories for the tragedy, says GlobalPost's senior South America correspondent, Simeon Tegel.

"Although the toll here is higher than usual, this kind of incident is hardly out of the ordinary on Latin America's killer roads, particularly in the Andes where small mistakes at the wheel usually leave little room for survivors," Tegel says.

 

[Rugal]

Published on Sep 9, 2013

<iframe src="//www.youtube.com/embed/HnOpI3UwiY4?rel=0" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" width="480"></iframe>

Rescue workers in Guatemala are investigating a deadly crash after a bus plummeted more than 660 feet (200 meters) to the bottom of a ravine. Rough Cut (no reporter narration).

 

[WithoutYou]

At least 44 killed after overcrowded bus plunges 650ft from clifftop into ravine in Guatemala

• The bus crashed around 40 miles outside of the capital Guatemala City
• It was carrying around 90 passengers when its capacity only allows 54
• At least six children are said to have died including three babies
• A further 46 passengers were taken to hospital for treatment to injuries
• It is thought that the driver lost control of the bus on a sharp bend
  

By STEVE NOLAN PUBLISHED: 03:33 GMT, 10 September 2013 | UPDATED: 08:24 GMT, 10 September 2013
​

At least 44 people died and dozens more were injured when an overcrowded bus fell off a clifftop in Guatemala and plunged 650 ft into a ravine below.The Guatemalan government declared three days of national mourning after the crash which happened around 40 miles northwest of the capital Guatemala City yesterday. Firefighters said that 38 people died at the scene of the crash including six children and a dozen women.

Deadly crash: At least 44 people were killed after a bus fell off a clifftop and into a ravine in Guatemala. The wreckage of the bus is pictured

Carnage: Rescue workers surround the wreckage of the bus while they search for survivors

Tragic: Firefighters recover a body following the crash which happened yesterday morning

Horror: Rescuers cover the bodies of some of those killed in the bus crash close to Guatemala City

At least three of those killed were reportedly babies.Officials say that the bus was carrying around 90 people when it fell into the ravine, despite only having an official capacity of 54.

Early investigations suggested that the driver of the bus, Yony Cumar Cana, who died in the crash, may have lost control on a bend. Residents of the closest town San Martín Jilotepeque gathered at the crash scene as rescue workers began retreiving bodies from the scene.

Shocking: The bus plunged around 650ft down into the ravine after the driver apparently lost control on a bend

Grim: At least three of those killed in the crash are said to have been babies

Mayor Otto Vielman said: 'From what we see, the bus crashed against a wall of rocks first and then fell over the cliff. 'Many of the passengers on board are said to have been vendors taking farm produce to sell at a market in the city.Around 46 passengers were taken to hospital for treatment.

Onlookers: Locals gather at the site of the crash to watch the rescue operation

Rescue effort: Hydraulic equipment was used to cut some of the survivors from the wreckage of the bus, say rescuers

Probe: Early investigations suggest that the driver of the bus, who was killed in the crash, may have hit a wall before the bus careered off the cliff

Grieving families gathered outside a recreation center near the accident site where authorities set up a makeshift morgue to identify the bodies of the passengers.spokesman for the volunteer fire department, Mario Cruz, said: 'Some of the people were rescued with hydraulic equipment, and others were thrown (from the bus) at the time of the accident.'The route is made up mostly of dirt roads that wind through steep mountains without guardrails or other safety measures. The mayor said a similar bus accident in 2000 on the same road killed 40 people. The last major bus crash in the country occurred in 2008 when an overcrowded bus slid off a highway and down a 50ft slope 40 miles southeast of the capital, killing 53.

Recovery: Rescuers winch a body across a nearby river on a stretcher

Overcrowded: The bus was carrying around 90 people when its official capacity only allows for 54, officials said


​