At least 51 people were killed after a bus drove off a highway bridge and crashed into a polluted ravine in Guatemala City on Monday (February 10), a spokesperson for the city’s fire department announced via Reuters.
The bus was on a busy route in and out of the city before plunging an estimated 65 feet from the Puente Belice bridge crossing located over a creek. Images shared by the Guatemala City Fire Department on its social media accounts showed the bus partially submerged in the wastewater where bodies of victims were located.
Guatemala City Fire Department spokesman Carlos Hernandez said the bodies of 36 men and 15 women were recovered and have been transported to a provincial morgue set up in relation to the accident. Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo declared three days of national mourning and deployed army and disaster agency personnel to help with response efforts.
“The tragedy at the Belize Bridge is a national sorrow that I deeply regret,” Arévalo wrote in a translated post on his Facebook account. “I stand with the families of the victims who wake up today to heartbreaking news. Your Pain Is My Pain.
“As President, I have instructed to mobilize the staff of Ejército GT Oficial and the Conred to attend the site and activate special criteria for medical care to the injured.
“In addition, I have decided to decree a national mourning, which will soon be formalized through a governmental agreement.”
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