Bus falls into river with all its passengers

Bus falls into river with all its passengers

Early yesterday a bus number  33 of the Fleet Pelileo, fell into the “Barranco Alto” River, with more than 45 passengers traveling from Pelileo to Guayaquil.

The bus, which departed on Friday at 11:00pmfrom the province of Tungurahua transporting mostly traders from Pelileo, who were going  to sell their clothing on Las Esclusas, south of Guayaquil.

The bus, plate TAQ-0292, fell off the bridgeat 3:30 am, at km 81 of the Guayaquil-Triunfo-Bucay rout. In the accident 13 people were killed and 33 were injured. The bus driver run away.

Several bodies were taken to the morgue in El Triunfo. At 09:15, outside the cemetery of El Triunfo (Guayas), were performed autopsies on the deceased. Most of the injured were also taken to the Luis Vernaza hospital of Guayaquil.

According to agents of the Transit Commission of Ecuador (CTE), the accident happened because of the bus lost track and then hit the railing of the bridge, and The driver could not handle it  so it fell to the riverbed.

At the scene of the tragedy, members of the fire department of Bucay and El Triunfo, came to the rescue. Relatives of the deceased arranged the Pelileo cantonal Coliseum, where the bodies arrived in the afternoon and held a vigil.

At 10:30 yesterday the bus was towed from the Barranco Alto estuary.