Five people die on trip to Aparecida do Norte.
A bus carrying pilgrims that departed from Minas Novas, in Minas Gerais, was involved in an accident on the BR-040 highway. 32 people were injured.
Five people died and at least 32 were injured at 23:40 pm yesterday after a bus from Viação Xavier Tur - which was transporting pilgrims and heading to the sanctuary of Aparecida (SP), in the Paraíba Valley - collided laterally with a bi-articulated truck, loaded with charcoal, stopped on the shoulder of BR-040, at kilometer 500, in Esmeraldas (MG), in the central region of Minas Gerais, 40 kilometers from Belo Horizonte.
According to the Federal Highway Police (PRF), the bus, with license plates from Leme do Prado (MG), had departed from the city of Minas Novas, in the Jequitinhonha Valley region. It is still unknown what caused the bus driver to veer onto the shoulder and hit the truck. Part of the coal cargo spilled onto the road. The five victims who died did not even make it to the hospitals.
The others, several of them in serious condition, were taken to hospitals in the region; some to the São Judas Tadeu Hospital in Ribeirão das Neves. Firefighters from Ribeirão das Neves and SAMU ambulances carried out the rescue of the injured. The Federal Highway Police (PRF) still does not know if there are any children or teenagers among the dead.
The stretch of road where the accident occurred is a divided highway, according to the Federal Highway Police (PRF). Despite the partial road closure until 2:30 AM, there was no traffic congestion in the area, due to the time of day.