Bus accident kills over 50 in Northern Argentina

At least 50 people died and other 20 were badly wounded after a bus crowded with pilgrims fell into a deep gorge in then northern province of Catamarca Sunday night. The accident took place in the Andean region of the Totoral Heights and, according to police reports, was caused by a failure of the vehicle's brakes before reaching a dangerous part of the road.

to witnesses, the road is in very bad condition due to the permanent transit of heavy trucks and the lack of maintenance. "The driver lost control of the bus and fell into the precipice. It was a big van and it is now completely destroyed," according to Mr. Julio Diaz, sub - secretary of security of the neighbouring province of Tucuman, where all the victims lived.

The majority of the passengers departed from Tucuman in a pilgrimage to Catamarca to pray to the Virgen del Valle, one of the most popular Madonnas in the region. All of them were returning to their homes when the accident happened.

Rescue teams kept up their efforts to rescue the injured people and remove the dead bodies from the gorge. In turn, local provincial authorities decreed two days of mourning in honor of the victims.

It is the worst-ever accident of this kind in the history of Catamarca, one of Argentina's poorest provinces, located 1,100 miles northwest of Buenos Aires.

Hernan Etchaleco PRAVDA.Ru Argentina

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