A packed bus collided with a truck and burst into flames early Saturday in Brazil, killing more than 30 people, the Fire Department said.
After removing all the victims from a major highway near the town of Teofilo Otoni in Minas Gerais, the state’s Fire Department reported that of the 45 people on the bus, 38, including the bus driver, had been confirmed dead.
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The other passengers remained in critical condition after being transported to a local hospital.
The truck driver fled the scene, and three occupants of a car that collided with the truck and became trapped underneath survived the accident, said the fire department.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva stated on social media that the government was ready to provide whatever assistance was needed, and that the Federal Highway Policy was at the site.
A map of Brazil. (Encyclopedia Britannica/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
“I deeply mourn and extend my prayers to the families of the more than 30 victims of the accident in Teofilo Otoni, Minas Gerais. I pray for the recovery of the survivors of this terrible tragedy,” he posted on X.
A forensic investigation will be required to determine the accident’s cause, as differing accounts were gathered from witness testimony, said the local Fire Department.
Initially, firefighters reported the bus had a tire blowout, causing the driver to lose control before colliding at around 4 a.m. local time, with an oncoming truck on the BR-116 federal highway, a major route connecting Brazil’s densely populated southeast to the poorer northeast.
However, witnesses also reported that a granite block the truck was transporting came loose, fell on the road and caused the collision with the bus, the Fire Department said.
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“Only the forensic investigation will confirm the true version,” said the fire department in a statement.
The bus departed from Sao Paulo and was headed to the state of Bahia.