A bus veered off the highway bridge and fell into a polluted ravine in Guatemala City during the early hours of Monday.
The incident killed at least 51 people and trapped many other survivors as per one spokesperson for the city’s fire department.
The densely packed bus was said to be traveling into the capital from the town of San Agustin Acasaguastlan on a busy route into the city from where it fell approximately 20 meters from the Puente Belice, which is a highway bridge that crosses over the road and creek.
The spokesperson said the bodies of 36 males and 15 women were sent to the provincial morgue that was set up after the accident.
Pictures that were shared by the fire department on social media showed the bus partially submerged inside the wastewater surrounded by the bodies of the victims.
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arevalo has declared a three-day mourning period and deployed the nation’s army and disaster agency to help with the response efforts. ‘I stand in solidarity with all the families of the victim that woke up today to the heartbreaking news of loved ones killed in the tragedy’- the statement read on social media.
