At least 16 dead after bus plunges down ravine in central Bolivia

La Paz: At least 16 people were killed on Monday when a bus rolled some 300 meters (1,000 feet) down a hillside in central Bolivia, police said.

The accident occurred in the morning near Morochata, roughly two and a half hours from the city of Cochabamba, located 380 kilometres (235 miles) southeast of La Paz.

Colonel Fernando Aragon, deputy director of the Cochabamba transit department, confirmed the initial death toll to reporters, describing the crash as “one of the most complex cases as it involves a bus with passengers” that occurred in an area “difficult to access.”

A preliminary investigation suggests the driver “lost control of the vehicle,” according to Colonel Omar Zegada, the national transit chief, who spoke to broadcaster Unitel.

Authorities have not yet disclosed whether the 23-year-old driver survived the crash or was among the victims. They also have not indicated how many passengers were on board.

Government data show that around 1,400 people die each year on Bolivia’s roads, mostly due to driver negligence and mechanical failures. The deadliest crash of 2025 so far occurred in March, when two buses collided head-on in the country’s south, killing 37 people.