ALBAWABA- At least 43 people were killed and around 40 others injured when a bus plunged 200 meters into a ravine on Monday near San Martín Jilotepeque, about 65 kilometers from Guatemala City.
The bus, which was carrying mostly vendors transporting farm produce to a local market, veered off a paved highway before crashing into a rock wall and plunging into the ravine, according to local media reports citing rescue workers.
Among the dead were the bus driver and eight children. Many of the injured were rushed to nearby hospitals, while others were transported to Guatemala City for treatment.
Rescue efforts were complicated by a fast-flowing river, requiring cables to be installed to carry stretchers across the water.
Authorities suspect the bus was severely overcrowded, carrying 90 passengers—far exceeding its capacity of 54. San Martín Jilotepeque Mayor Otto Vielman confirmed the bus hit a rock face before tumbling into the ravine.
According to firefighting spokesperson Edwin Villagrán, a multi-vehicle crash may have caused the bus to go off the bridge before dawn.
This tragedy is one of the worst bus accidents in Guatemala in recent years, following a similar fatal crash five years ago, where a bus accident claimed over 50 lives.
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo expressed his condolences and declared a day of national mourning.
