A new road tragedy shocked the municipality of Antioquia when an intercommunal bus carrying 25 passengers fell into a 50-meter-high abyss at kilometer three of the Santa Elena highway, in the Medellín countryside, on the morning of Monday, December 22nd.
The accident, which also involved a van and a house in the sector known as March 8, raised alarm among residents and passers-by in the area, given the recent incident recorded on Sunday, December 14, in northeast Antioquia, in which 17 people died.16 students and the driver died after the bus they were on plunged into a chasm on Belén RoadEl Chispero sector, between Remedios and Zaragoza.
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The first information from the Medellín Mobility Secretariat confirmed that no fatalities were reported following the accident in Santa Elena, although several people were injured.
As the company continued: “Several people were injured and fortunately we cannot confirm any casualties.” Among the injured is an older adult who was in the home that was struck by the bus. This man was transferred to the El Rosario clinic in Medellín due to the severity of his injuries.
According to Carlos Andrés Quintero, director of the Administrative Department of Disaster Risk Management of Medellín (Dagrd), the first hypothesis that the authorities are dealing with suggests that the accident could have been caused by a fault in the braking systems of the vehicle that traveled the Medellín-Rionegro route.
About 20 fire brigade units were involved in the relief work, stabilizing the bus, extricating the affected people and carrying out an inspection of the entire area to rule out further casualties.
“Currently we are stabilizing the bus to be able to carry out the recovery and continue to carry out an inspection and verification of the entire area, excluding any type of affected person,” explained Quintero.
The consolidated report shows that of the 25 passengers on the bus, 12 were injured and six had to be taken to health centers immediately. The collision also involved a pickup truck overturned on the road and a home, with structural damage and the impact of the aforementioned older adult reported.
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He also added that the city administration is supporting the victims and their families in the recovery process. In addition, six ambulances were deployed to help the injured and increase care on site.
Images captured by surveillance cameras showed the bus losing control as it departed Rionegro after colliding with the overturned van. Because of his speed, he left the road, crashed into a truck and fell into a ravine about 20 meters deep. – a detail that is repeated in the visual reconstruction, even though the authority had reported a greater decline.
The initial impact on the house also sparked fear in the industry as residents were surprised by the extent of the accident. Authorities continue to investigate the exact origin of the tragedy and plan to make a final tally of the injured in the coming hours.
Amid concerns about the series of accidents in the region, the government of Federico Gutiérrez reiterated its commitment to supporting those affected and the priority of strengthening inspection and relief measures on intercommunal roads.
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