GUALACA, CHIRIQUÍ. A bus carrying with 66 passengers including migrants, crashed in Los Planes de Gualaca, Chiriquí province, early this Wednesday, February 15. At the moment, 39 dead and more than 20 injured are reported.
The vehicle came from the province of Darién.
According to preliminary reports, the driver passed the entrance to the migrant shelter in Los Planes de Gualaca and while trying to return he passed onto another access road to the camp, where a bus was parked.
The owner of this bus said that he saw the transport bus go down, hit the metal safety railings, and fall on the access road where it hit him.
Edilberto Armuelles, a major from the Chiriquí Fire Department who is in the area, said that 23 people were transferred to hospitals.
Samira Gozaine, director of the National Migration Service, said the causes of the accident are being investigated.
The bus was driven by Panamanian drivers who provide the service from Darién to Gualaca. It is a private service that provided to migrants who buy a ticket to be taken to the shelter.
Transfers of migrants entering through Darién are constant and many are taken to the camp in Gualaca, since these people make long journeys in the hope of reaching the United States, in search of a better life.
Gozaine stressed that migrants continue to arrive in Darién, according to information provided by the Minister of Security, Juan Manuel Pino.
María Isabel Saravia, deputy director of Migration, said that she is traveling to the scene with other authorities.
She stressed that the entire protocol will be carried out respecting human dignity. In addition, all possible attention will be provided, within the rigor that these cases deserve.
Ambulances arrived at the scene and began to transfer the injured to the Rafael Hernández Hospital in the city of David.
The authorities continue to collect the information to reveal the exact number, nationalities and identity of the victims.
Drivers have been asked to avoid traveling through this area, since the accident has generated traffic on the route, where rescue work is being carried out.
Meanwhile, Einar Cruz, director of Emergencies of the Social Security Fund (CSS), said that four ambulances are still operational and received several critically injured.
Carlos Rumbo, director of the National Civil Protection System (Sinaproc), reported that the Joint Task Force collaborates in the rescue and transfer efforts to make the arrival of the injured to hospitals quick.
Rescuers from the provinces of Chiriquí and Veraguas, in addition to those from the border area, participate in relief efforts.
On his Twitter account, the President of the Republic, Laurentino Cortizo, lamented the death of these migrants who were being transported from Darién to the Los Planes de Gualaca shelter.
The respective investigations have been initiated.