ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – At least 66 people have died after a truck plunged into a river in southern Ethiopia, a hospital director said Monday.
The accident occurred on Sunday, when an old, overcrowded truck carrying wedding guests fell off the Guerin Bridge, and villagers said road accidents had happened before.
Lemma Lagide, the medical director of Bona General Hospital in the southern Sidama region, told The Associated Press on Monday that 64 people died at the scene and two others died at the hospital.
He said patients requiring more advanced life-saving treatment were transferred to a larger hospital in Hawassa.
Delays in rescue operations in remote villages are blamed for the large number of casualties.
Villagers said they tried to save people from the rushing river using only sticks.
Villager Serak Boko told The Associated Press that just before the accident, music was blaring from the truck and people in suits were dancing and waving.
In rural Ethiopia, it is common to hire trucks instead of buses to go to social events such as weddings. Trucks are cheaper and can carry more people.
Most of the people in the truck were men, as it is culturally obligatory to escort the bride from her home to the groom's home.
“There are always regular accidents in this area because the river is poorly constructed,” said resident Fasil Atala, referring to the lack of bumps and warnings on the road.
Similar accidents have happened in the past in Ethiopia, where infrastructure is in disrepair and public transport is congested.
In August, 38 people were killed when a bus overturned in Amhara state.
