A school bus carrying students plunged off a cliff in a rural area of Antioquia, northwest Colombia, on Sunday, killing 17 people and injuring 20 others, local authorities said. The victims included the bus driver and a majority of the students on board; many of the injured were taken to hospitals in nearby towns, Reuters reports.
The bus was returning to Medellin from the Caribbean town of Tolu after what officials and local media described as a student-organized graduation trip. The accident occurred on the road between the municipalities of Remedios and Zaragoza, in a steep, mountainous stretch where the vehicle fell roughly 80 meters into a ravine, according to regional reports cited by El Pais.
Early accounts from survivors and emergency crews say the crash happened in the pre-dawn hours of Sunday, Dec. 14, and one young survivor reportedly alerted rescue teams after the vehicle came to rest in the valley. Governor of the Antioquia department, Andres Julian Rendon, expressed his condolences and described the crash as “very hard news” for the community, calling for a full investigation into what led to the tragedy.
School bus plunges into a ravine in Colombia, leaving 17 dead and 20 injured
People.com reports that preliminary inquiries by road-safety authorities and prosecutors are underway. Authorities have not released a definitive cause, but some early reports indicate the driver may have suffered a brief lapse of consciousness — a so-called microsleep — before the bus veered off the road. Investigators will examine vehicle condition, driver records, hours of service, and the role, if any, of road conditions or weather.
Hospitals in the municipalities of Segovia and Remedios received the injured, among them minors and adults; several were reported in serious condition. Local schools and community groups arranged vigils and emergency support for the families of the victims, while municipal authorities pledged to coordinate medical care and psychological support for survivors.
Colombia has a long history of fatal road accidents
Colombia has a long history of deadly road accidents, many involving buses on mountainous routes. The latest tragedy has renewed public debate over school-trip safety, transport oversight, and driver working conditions — issues regional leaders say must be addressed to reduce the risk of similar disasters. National transport and education agencies said they would assist local authorities in the investigation and review safety protocols for student travel.
As families in Antioquia mourn, investigators continue to collect evidence at the scene. Authorities have called for patience while forensic and technical teams determine the sequence of events that led to one of the deadliest school-related road accidents in the region this year.