A tourist bus carrying passengers through the Peruvian Andes has plummeted 200 metres off a mountainside near the city of Cusco, killing 25 people and injuring 13 others in the country’s deadliest road accident this year. The devastating crash, which occurred in the early hours of Thursday morning, has cast a pall over the popular tourist region and reignited urgent calls for improved road safety.
The bus, which was travelling from the coastal town of Chala, veered off the Pan-American Highway on a sharp curve, collided with a truck, and then tumbled into a deep ravine. Rescue workers spent hours recovering bodies from the wreckage in difficult, rain-soaked conditions.
The death toll includes three children, while the 13 injured survivors have been hospitalised in Cusco, some in critical condition. Preliminary reports from authorities suggest that heavy seasonal rains created slick road conditions and reduced visibility. In a troubling development, officials confirmed that the driver of the truck involved tested positive for alcohol.
A local police commander at the scene described the chaotic aftermath. “The road was slick from the rains, and the driver lost control. The vehicle then collided with a truck before going over the edge,” he said, as rescue operations continued.
At a hospital in Cusco, where families gathered to identify their loved ones, grief mixed with anger. One grieving relative lamented, “This highway is a death trap. How many more must die before the government fixes these roads?” A representative from the tourism ministry offered condolences, stating, “We are providing all necessary support to the victims’ families and the injured. This is a profound tragedy for our community.”
The broader context of this tragedy is the perilous state of many of Peru’s Andean highways, which are vital arteries for both the mining and tourism industries but are notoriously dangerous due to their narrow, winding paths, frequent rockfalls, and poor maintenance.
Road accidents claim an average of 500 lives annually in Peru. This crash, occurring so close to the gateway city for Machu Picchu, is a severe blow to the tourism sector, which is still recovering from the pandemic. It follows another fatal crash in July that killed 18 people. The new government, elected in 2024, has vowed to prioritise infrastructure upgrades, but this latest disaster underscores the immense scale and urgency of the challenge.
Written by Were Kelly
Sources: Al Jazeera, BBC, Washington Post.
