12 killed after passenger bus plunges off cliff in Mexico

USPA News - Twelve people were killed late Saturday evening when a passenger bus collided with a car and tumbled down a cliff in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz, state officials said on Sunday. More than a dozen people, including two children, were injured.

The accident happened around 7 p.m. local time on Saturday when a passenger bus collided with a car on a mountain road near the town of Naolinco, located about 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) northeast of Xalapa, the state`s capital. The bus then fell over a cliff, causing it to roll over while tumbling more than 200 meters (650 feet) down the slope. Veracruz governor Javier Duarte said Sunday that twelve people were killed while fourteen others were injured, including eleven injured who were taken to area hospitals. "Fortunately, none of the injured were seriously hurt," said Veracruz governor Javier Duarte. "Just some cuts and fractures which are being treated and under medical observation." The bus, which was carrying around 27 people, was en-route to Xalapa, the governor said. It was not immediately known what caused the accident, which occurred at a bend in the road amid foggy conditions. Police said the driver of the car fled the scene after the accident and was being sought. Road accidents are common in Mexico, and the number of fatalities has increased significantly over the past decade. At least 17,820 people were killed as a result of road accidents in 2009, according to the Secretariat of Health. Only about one percent of deaths involved passenger buses. In April 2012, 43 people were killed and 27 others were injured when the rear trailer of a truck decoupled and slammed into an oncoming bus on the Alamo-El Potrero highway in the municipality of Alamo, located in the eastern state of Veracruz. It was the country`s worst road accident in recent years.