16 dead, 36 injured after bus carrying migrants crashes in Mexico

An accident involving a bus carrying migrants and locals in central Mexico left at least 16 people dead and 36 others injured on Tuesday, according to government officials. 

The bus was driving on Mexico’s Cuacnopalan-Oaxaca highway between the states of Oaxaca and Puebla when it collided with a trailer truck, Oaxaca’s Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement. 

Out of the 52 passengers on board, eight men and eight women, including one minor died at the scene as a result of the accident. According to the National Immigration Institute, 15 of the dead were Mexicans, while one was a Venezuelan citizen. 

Thirty-six others were transferred to nearby hospitals in Puebla to receive treatment. Nine of those injured were Venezuelans who had appointments with Customs and Border Protection agents to apply for asylum, reported NBC News. 

“I have instructed the heads of the relevant authorities to collaborate and support the injured people,” the governor of Oaxaca, Salomón Jara Cruz, posted in a tweet.

“We send a hug and condolences to the families of the deceased, to whom we will also provide all our support,” he added. 

It is unclear what caused the accident. However, the prosecutor’s office said it will launch an investigation to determine what led to the tragic crash. 

The accident is the latest tragedy involving a passenger bus in Mexico in recent months. In early August, 17 people died after a bus fell down a steep mountain while traveling from Mexico City to Tijuana. At least 22 others were injured in the accident, according to a statement by the state public safety agency. 

In July, a bus crashed into the ravine in the southern state of Oaxaca, leaving at least 29 people dead and 19 others injured, including several minors. Authorities believe that the driver lost control of the bus after losing its brakes, causing it to roll over and fall into a steep ravine.