- The truck struck a group of people who had gone onto the road to inspect another person who had been hit by a car
GUATEMALA CITY: Guatemalan rescue officials revised down the death toll from a road accident involving a truck that struck a group of indigenous people in the country’s west, from 30 to 18.
“In total there are 18 deaths that have been counted in this tragedy,” fire department spokesman Cecilio Chacaj said.
The truck struck a group of people who had gone onto the road to inspect another person who had been hit by a car, Chacaj said.
The crash killed at least 32 people, and nine people were admitted to hospitals in a critical condition, Public Health Minister Carlos Soto earllier said on local radio.
The accident took place in the municipality of Nahuala, west of Guatemala City.
“At this time we are coordinating our response to bring full support to the relatives of the victims,” President Jimmy Morales wrote in a post on Twitter. “My heartfelt condolences.”
The crash marked one of the country’s worst traffic accidents in recent years. In 2013, a bus plunged off a cliff in rural Guatemala, killing at least 43 people and injuring dozens.