Cape Verde has declared two days of national mourning following a devastating bus crash on the island of Fogo that killed 25 people, most of them children and teenagers returning from an excursion.
The government announced the mourning period on Sunday as the island began burying victims of the crash, which occurred late Saturday when a bus carrying the group reportedly veered off the road and plunged into a deep ravine.
The accident happened after an excursion to a village located inside a volcanic crater, with the bus travelling through a remote and rocky area when it left the roadway.
The tragedy has shocked the Atlantic archipelago, where serious road accidents of this nature are described as uncommon and roads are generally considered to be in good condition.
Leaders attend Mass as funerals begin
Government and political leaders joined residents at a Mass on Sunday at a local church on Fogo as the community mourned the victims.
Eighteen coffins were displayed at the church during the service, providing a sombre setting as families and community members gathered to honour those who died.
Seven of the victims had already been buried earlier on Sunday, while the remaining funerals were scheduled to take place later in the day, according to public radio network RCV.
The deaths included the driver of the bus, who had organised the annual excursion as a gift for the pupils he transported to school during the academic term.
The annual trip had therefore been organised as a recreational activity for the students, making the loss particularly painful for the families and community members who knew the driver and the children involved.
Bus plunged into deep ravine
The crash occurred late Saturday when the bus reportedly left the road and plunged into a deep ravine following the group’s excursion.
The location presented major challenges for emergency personnel because the wreckage was in a remote, rocky valley.
Rescue workers operated throughout the night as they attempted to reach people trapped inside the wreckage and remove victims from the difficult terrain.
The first casualties began arriving at the regional hospital on Fogo between approximately 11pm and midnight on Saturday, according to Dionisio Semedo, a doctor at the facility.
The hospital received both bodies and injured passengers as emergency operations continued.
The scale of the disaster placed significant pressure on the local response effort, with rescuers working overnight to recover victims from the crash site while medical personnel treated survivors.
Twelve people remain in hospital
Twelve people were still receiving treatment at the regional hospital on Sunday, Semedo told public television.
Two of those injured were reported to be in serious condition.
The medical response continued as authorities dealt with the immediate consequences of the crash and families awaited the burial of their relatives.
The deaths of 25 people make the incident one of the country’s major recent tragedies, particularly because most of those killed were children and teenagers.
The circumstances of the crash have not yet been fully established.
President José Neves said he would order an inquiry into what led to the accident, indicating that the circumstances surrounding the bus leaving the road would be formally investigated.
“Right now the priority is to show solidarity with the families of the victims,” Neves said.
Government announces mourning period
Prime Minister Francisco Carvalho announced the two-day mourning period as the government responded to the scale of the tragedy.
Speaking to public television station TCV, Carvalho said he had ordered the period of mourning and indicated that further measures would follow.
The government response came as relatives and residents gathered for funeral ceremonies and emergency teams continued supporting those affected by the crash.
The mourning period provides a national expression of grief while the authorities begin the process of establishing exactly what happened.
The president’s decision to order an inquiry is expected to focus attention on the circumstances that caused the bus to veer from the road and fall into the ravine.
Community confronts rare tragedy
Road accidents of this magnitude are relatively unusual in Cape Verde, an Atlantic archipelago where roads are generally described as being in good condition.
That made the scale of Saturday night’s crash particularly devastating for the local community.
The victims were travelling as part of an organised excursion, and the presence of a large number of young people on the bus meant that the accident affected numerous families at once.
The death of the driver also added to the tragedy. He had reportedly organised the annual outing as a gift for the pupils he normally drove to school, turning what was intended to be a recreational trip into a disaster.
On Sunday, attention remained focused on the victims, their families and the survivors still being treated at hospital.
Emergency personnel had spent the night working in difficult conditions to recover those trapped in the wreckage, while medical staff received casualties from late Saturday night.
With seven victims already buried and more funerals scheduled, Fogo continued to mourn the 25 people killed in the crash.
The government has promised further measures following the two-day mourning period, while President Neves has ordered an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the accident.
For the island and the wider country, Sunday was marked by mourning, funerals and support for families dealing with the sudden loss of children, teenagers and the driver who had organised their annual excursion.
Cape Verde Declares Two Days of Mourning After Bus Crash Kills 25
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