Panama: death toll in migrant bus crash rises to 40

The authorities of Panama raised 40 quantity deadincluding children, in case of an accident bus who this Wednesday brought illegal migrants to a shelter located near the border with Costa Rica.

As a result of the accident, which occurred around 4:00 local time (9:00 GMT) in St. gualakawestern province district tweetslocated about 450 kilometers from the capital of Panama, more than 20 people, according to the authorities.

A source at the Ministry of Public Administration told EFE that one of the wounded died while being treated in hospital. 40 quantity fatality in an accident.

Among the injured are about a dozen children aged 5 to 11, three of whom are in critical condition at a children’s hospital in the city of David, the capital of Chiriqui, the institution’s medical director explained. Johnny Parr.

UNICEF Emergency Protection Specialist, Diana Romerotold EFE that the UN organization “deeply” regrets the incident, “which affected several boys and girls whom we took care of just a few hours ago in Darién,” a Panamanian province on the border with Colombia through which thousands of illegal migrants from all over around the world arrive the world travels to the United States.

At another hospital in the city of David, there are 23 injured, a dozen of whom are in critical condition in intensive care units, medical sources said.

Cubans and Colombians among the dead

Panamanian authorities They did not publicly disclose the age or nationality of the deceased, who are believed to have been mostly migrants bound for North America.

The deputy director of the National Migration Service (SNM), Maria Isabel Saravia, said at a press conference that children were among the dead – there were 20 minors on the bus – as well as a Panamanian who was one of the two drivers.

Saravia specified that “66 non-citizens” of Panama were on the bus. He limited himself to saying that the list included citizens of Africa and South American countries such as Brazil and Ecuador, and that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was in contact with various governments.

The Cuban Foreign Ministry confirmed this Wednesday, without specifying the number, that there were citizens of the island among the dead, while the Colombian government expressed its “deepest condolences to the relatives of the victims, Colombians and from several brotherly countries.”

For its part, the Ecuadorian embassy in Panama said that 22 citizens of this country were traveling on the bus and that it had requested information from the Panamanian authorities about their status.

One of the worst traffic accidents in Panama

According to the version available and confirmed by the authorities, the bus driver missed the entrance to the Gualac shelter, and when he returned, he lost control, collided with at least one stationary object and collapsed into a ravine.

The bus was destroyed, without a roof and with chairs scattered across the floor. Panama prosecutors said there were dismembered bodies.

This is the largest accident of this type recorded in Panama in over 50 years.

Saravia stressed that this “unfortunate” incident occurred in the context of a regional migration crisis: in 2022, an unprecedented number of 248,284 illegal travelers arrived in Panama, passing through several countries in South America and crossing the Darien jungle, and more than 37,000 people. what happened this year

“This is a constant movement (…) with Operation Controlled Flow, Panama moved more than 500,000 people in the context of international mobility, protected them and provided humanitarian assistance within its capabilities,” he added.

Panama hosts illegal migrants who traverse the jungle at stations that take biometrics and offer them medical and food assistance, after which they are taken by bus to the Costa Rica border to continue their journey.

Activists have denounced overcrowding at immigration checkpoints, and a recent report by independent experts and UN Special Rapporteurs denounced allegations of alleged violence, including sexual abuse, against migrants by Panamanian officials, which authorities have so far denied.

(As reported by EFE)