Costa Rica: 9 dead after a bus fell to a precipice

According to what the Red Cross reported, at least nine people died after a bus and two other vehicles fell off a cliff, pushed by a landslide because of the rains, in western Costa Rica. A preliminary data of nine people without vital signs is maintained at this time, “the relief entity announced on Twitter after the accident.
The incident happened towards the end of Saturday afternoon in a mountain pass called El Hundimiento in Cambroner, in the province of Alajuela, about 80 kilometers west of the capital. Another 34 people were rescued alive and 11 remain injured trapped in the public transport unit in the 75-meter-deep ravine. According to AFP, firefighters and other assistance services began rescue work on Saturday night. Authorities suspect there could be more victims under the double-decker bus, which was carrying about 60 people. In addition, two vehicles were also washed away.” They have abandoned us for years,” said Gilber Martínez, a resident of the town, about the conditions of this road crossing where the inhabitants had already denounced the absence of containment railings or road signs. On the other hand, the Minister of Public Works, Luis Amador, explained that “this type of situation is unpredictable. They are not the fault of the government, they are not the fault of the bus company. It’s a situation we can’t predict.” In March of last year, a report by the National Laboratory of Materials and Structural Models of the University of Costa Rica (LanammeUCR) showed that the route through Cambronero presented a high risk of subsidence or collapse in three points.

Original source in Spanish