The vehicle ended up in a riverbed. The Prosecutor’s Office ordered the arrest of the driver, who was accused of manslaughter and negligent injuries.
April 30, 2024, 07:35 a.m.
The Prosecutor’s Office ordered the arrest of the driver. (Photo: AFP/Ismael Mantilla).
At least 27 people died and 15 were injured when a bus fell off a cliff on a remote rural road in the Cajarmarca region of northern Peru.
According to the police, among the fatal victims are two boys, one six years old and the other just two months old.
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At least 27 people died in the accident. (Photo: Peruvian Police).
The Prosecutor’s Office ordered the preliminary arrest of the driver, Máximo Ortiz Marchena, as “the alleged perpetrator of the crimes of manslaughter and negligent injuriesto the detriment of the victims of the car accident.”
How did the accident happen
The accident occurred Sunday night on a narrow, winding stretch of road where the passenger vehicle overturned and fell into a precipice of more than 200 meters in the province of Celendín, in the Andean region of Cajamarca, about 850 km north of Lima.
Police investigate the scene of the bus accident in Peru. (Photo: X/PolíaPerú).
The bus was carrying more than 50 passengers and was heading from the Sorochuco district to the city of Celendín. He was just minutes away from reaching his destination when the accident occurred.
The vehicle ended up in the bed of the Sendamal Riveraccording to images spread on social networks.
“In recent years in the province of Celendín there have been no reports of an accident of this nature,” said the head of the Celendín police, Commander Hugo Uriarte.
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According to various testimonies, the accident occurred due to driver error, Uriarte said.
The pain of the victims’ families
Dozens of relatives arrived at the Sorochuco police station, the closest to the scene of the accident, to recognize and recover the bodies of the victims.
The bus fell 200 meters into the Sendamal River bed. (Photo: AFP/Ismael Mantilla).
The mayor of Celendín, Julio Chavez, “asked the authorities for a thorough investigation to determine the causes of the accident.” Furthermore, he decreed three days of mourning.
Accidents on Peruvian routes are frequent due to excess speed, the poor condition of the routes, the lack of signage and the lack of control by the authorities.
In 2023, Peru registered a total of 3,138 deaths from traffic accidents, according to the Ministry of Transportation. 70% of accidents are due to human factors due to driver incompetence or fatigue.
