Veracruz, Mexico – An eight-year old girl who survived the worst Mexican bus crash in recent memory left hospital after a remarkable recovery on Saturday, saying she had been saved by her grandmother.
Orfa Elisa Jimenez, was picked up from the Escudero hospital by her parents in the city of Orizaba, five days after the bus plunged into a 200-meter (650-foot) ravine in Eastern Mexico killing 58 people.
Jimenez had a fracture in her left leg and healing injuries to the head.
“We thank God that my daughter could survive this accident that killed so many people,” father Jose Jimenez said. “It was a true miracle.” The only other survivor of the Monday crash was 15-year old Dulce Janeth Castillo, who remained in hospital in serious condition on Saturday.
Jose Jimenez said his daughter recalled how her grandmother, who was traveling with her, hugged her tightly as the bus tumbled down the ravine, shielding her.
“Her grandma protected her and saved our daughter’s life,” Jimenez said.
Doctor Rogelio Hernandez, who attend to Jimenez, said she would need psychological treatment after the trauma.
“She was conscious during the accident and lived through a terrible thing,” Hernandez said. “It was difficult to discuss what happened with her.” Federal transportation officials said the 22-year old bus involved in the crash wasn’t registered with transit authorities and never should have been allowed on the road. The vehicle’s license plate numbers did not correspond to any vehicle registered to the owner of the bus company, Mario Carrillo.
State and federal officials are investigating Carrillo, but he fled after the crash and his whereabouts remain unknown.
The crash occurred on a highway linking Mexico City and the port city of Veracruz that’s considered one of the country’s most dangerous routes. It took place about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the town of Maltrata, in Veracruz, which borders Tabasco, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) east of the nation’s capital.
Investigators said that while mechanical failure likely caused the overloaded bus to lose control, the driver failed to properly use an emergency off-ramp that might have prevented the crash.
As the vehicle barreled down a windy mountain highway, the driver, who was among those killed, steered into a lane for vehicles with braking problems.
But instead of choosing a lane comprised of loose gravel that might have brought the vehicle to a stop, he instead picked one featuring harder-packed, faster gravel that did little to slow the bus.
