President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva described the Saturday bus catastrophe in southeast Brazil, which claimed the lives of at least 38 people, as a “tragedy.”
The Federal Highway Police (PRF) told the media that the crash in Minas Gerais state, which involved a bus that caught fire in the collision, was the worst to occur on Brazil’s federal highways since 2007. Nine persons were hospitalized, and civil police confirmed 38 deaths.
The PRF said in a statement that preliminary evidence indicated a block of stone “possibly” fell off a truck that was travelling in the opposite direction and struck the bus. According to firefighters, the truck driver left the site. The bus blew a tyre at around 4:00 am, according to firefighters, which caused the driver to lose control and hit a truck.
A local fire department official had earlier told AFP that “it was not yet possible to specify the exact number due to the state of the bodies.” The death toll continued to rise throughout the day.
The fire brigade, which extracted burned remains from the wreckage, claimed that some of the victims had been trapped inside.
According to a video published on Saturday morning by Minas Gerais fire department Lieutenant Alonso Vieira Junior, a crane would be required to clear the debris, who also stated that “there are still more victims to be removed.”
The bus driver and at least one youngster were among the victims. Lula posted a prayer on social media for “the recovery of the survivors of this terrible tragedy.”
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