A bus crash in Morocco has killed 33 people, most of them children, when the bus crashed into a gas tanker truck, bursting into flames on Friday, according to an official from a local rights group. Benmane Fadli, the regional director of the transportation ministry, stated most of the bodies were completely carbonized. They have been in contact with the transportation company to identify those who were on the bus.
The bus was traveling from Benslimane, a coastal city in Morocco, to Laayoune in the Western Sahara, when the collision occurred near the town of Tan-Tan in the south of Morocco. The majority of the deceased were children who returning from a school sponsored athletic event, stated the Association of Human Rights. Though, local authorities have yet to confirm this statement.
The accident with the gas tanker truck occurred approximately 40 miles south of Tan-Tan, at Shbeka Town. Around 10 individuals were wounded and five were taken to the hospital for their injuries.
Car ownership has doubled with in past 15 years in Morocco, leading to an increased number of road accidents. Officials from the Ministry of Transportation state that 10 people die per day due to road accidents.
By Alex Lemieux
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Photo by Carsten ten Brink – Flickr License
