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Cuba bus crash: Foreigners among seven dead | |
(about 1 hour later) | |
A bus crash in eastern Cuba has left at least seven people dead, including four foreigners, and dozens others injured, local media say. | |
Two of the foreigners were from Argentina while one was from France and another from Germany. | |
Some 33 people were injured, including citizens from the UK, the US, Canada, France, the Netherlands and Spain. | |
Thursday's accident happened between the eastern cities of Baracoa and Guantánamo. | |
The bus, from the state-owned company Viazul, was travelling from Baracoa to the capital, Havana when it crashed at around 15:00 local time (20:00 GMT). | |
The driver told local media that he lost control on a wet section of the road. But witnesses said the accident happened after he tried to overtake another vehicle. | |
The victims included two Argentinean women, aged 35, a 59-year-old German woman and a 67-year-old Frenchman, according to a list published by Radio Guantánamo. | |
The Cubans were two men, aged 32 and 47, and a 34-year-old woman. | |
Meanwhile, five of the injured were said to be in critical condition in hospital. Their ages range from 42 to 74. | |
The UK Foreign Office said it was "seeking information from the Cuban authorities" and that it was "ready to assist any British people who require our help," a spokesperson told the BBC. | The UK Foreign Office said it was "seeking information from the Cuban authorities" and that it was "ready to assist any British people who require our help," a spokesperson told the BBC. |
Viazul is run by the military's tourism wing and is one of the preferred ways for visitors to travel the island, the BBC's Will Grant in Havana reports. | |
Cuba's roads are notoriously poor with many of them badly-lit and poorly maintained, especially in that region of the country, our correspondent adds. | |
Traffic accidents are common in Cuba and have resulted in some 4,400 deaths since 2012, according to official data cited by EFE news agency. |