18 dead, 33 injured after bus falls off cliff in Mexico 

At least 18 people died and 33 were injured after a tourist bus fell off a cliff in Mexico, authorities said on Sunday. 

The bus was traveling on a highway from Tlajomulco in central Jalisco and was headed to Puerto Vallarta on Saturday night when it fell more than 49 feet (15 meters) down a ravine, the prosecutor’s office for the state of Nayarit said. 

"The incident took place while the bus was transporting passengers on a 220 km journey from Guadalajara, in the neighboring state of Jalisco, to the beach destination of Guayabitos in Nayarit,” Civil Protection officer Pedro Nunes said.  

The cause of the accident has not yet been identified. However, according to a preliminary investigation the bus might have had a mechanical failure, which caused it to deviate from the highway. Authorities are still investigating the matter

"With regard to the progress of the investigation, taking into consideration the findings at the scene of the incident, as well as the physical verification by a mechanical expert of the damaged vehicle, it was determined that the event occurred as a result of a brake failure, as a hose was found out of place," the prosecutor’s office added.  

Al menos 18 personas murieron en accidente vial ocurrido en México https://t.co/wdHA3jdQdH pic.twitter.com/6nqY7gNGRb

— Mundo UR (@MundoURWeb) May 1, 2023

"From the first moment, we have worked in a coordinated manner with the various federal and state authorities to provide immediate attention to victims," the prosecutor's office said in a statement shared on Twitter.

Among the 18 victims that lost their lives, 11 of them were women and seven were men. The injured, including 11 minors, were transported to three hospitals in Nayarit. 

Nunez said that all of the passengers onboard the private company tourist bus were Mexican nationals. 

The Mayor of Guadalajara, Pablo Lemus, has said that his cabinet "remains attentive to the needs of the families affected by the accident" and has pointed out that he is working in coordination with the authorities of Jalisco "to attend and relocate those affected by the tragic accident."