Bolivia road crash leaves at least 47 dead

July 9, 2008

A road crash in Bolivia has left at least 47 people dead. It is unclear if the vehicle was a bus or a truck with passengers on its back, but it is known it lost control on a mountainous South Bolivian road and fell 200 metres down a cliff.

The accident occurred near Potosi, a mining town. "The truck was loaded with 60 people who were sitting on top of their loads, which crushed them when the truck fell," according to Erbol radio station, while BBC News Online has an image showing debris that appears to be a shed load from a truck, but not of the actual vehicle for confirmation.

Local police say they have identified 41 dead and released their names, but six further bodies remain to be identified. At least twelve of the deceased are children, and at least eleven people are injured.

There is no official word regarding the disaster's cause, but local witnesses have claimed to reporters that the vehicle was traveling at excessive speed.