At least 33 people died Wednesday morning in Panama in the collision between a migrant bus bound for the United States and a minibus on a Panamanian highway, announced Panamanian President Laurentino Cortizo.
“
It is with great sadness that I learned of the traffic accident in Gualaca, in the province of Chiriquí (about 400 km west of the capital, Editor's note), in which 33 migrants lost their lives. as they were being transported from Darién (on the Colombian border) to a hostel located there
,” Laurentino Cortizo tweeted.
Increases in irregular migration
The bus was transporting migrants from Darién, the jungle area bordering Colombia, to Costa Rica, from where they intended to continue their journey to the United States.
On board the vehicle were 66 people, including the driver and his assistant, police traffic operations chief Commissioner Emiliano Otero told reporters.
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Authorities did not immediately disclose the nationalities of the bus occupants.
The number of irregular migrants arriving in Panama by road bound for the United States has almost doubled in 2022 in one year, reaching a record of 248,000, more than half of whom are Venezuelans, according to the Panamanian immigration services.