Nine killed in bus and semi-truck crash on BR-251 in Minas Gerais, Brazil.
NEWS:
Nine people were killed and nine others were injured after an interstate bus and a semi-truck collided head-on and caught fire on BR-251 in Santa Cruz de Salinas, Minas Gerais, Brazil, on May 24, 2026.
The crash happened before dawn on a stretch of the federal highway near Santa Cruz de Salinas. The bus had left São Bernardo do Campo, in São Paulo state, and was traveling to Aracaju, Sergipe. The semi-truck was carrying automotive parts and scrap on a route from Fortaleza, Ceará, to Piracicaba, São Paulo.
Video from the scene shows the wreckage engulfed in flames after the collision. The fire destroyed both vehicles and left the bus badly twisted, complicating the effort to remove victims from the wreckage.
Eight people were initially confirmed dead. All of them were on the bus. Firefighters said the victims' bodies were burned in the fire, and the condition of the wreckage made the recovery and identification work difficult. Emergency crews initially reported ten injured people, including the truck driver, but the later confirmed toll was nine dead and nine injured.
Several ambulances from surrounding communities were sent to the scene. Survivors were taken to hospitals in the region. Two passengers told emergency crews that they had jumped from the bus to escape the flames. The truck driver was found alive and was also taken for medical care.
The BR-251 was completely closed in both directions while firefighters, highway police, medical crews and forensic teams worked at the scene. The shutdown caused a long traffic backup. Firefighters later estimated the congestion reached about 70 kilometers combined in both directions. The highway was fully reopened at around 4 p.m. after the wreckage was removed and the roadway was cleared.
The initial death toll changed two days later. On May 26, investigators found additional charred human remains trapped inside the bus structure after the vehicle had been moved to an authorized police yard in Salinas. Tools were needed to open part of the wreckage. The remains were sent first to the medical examiner's office in Taiobeiras and then to Belo Horizonte for forensic examination, raising the confirmed number of deaths from eight to nine.
Because the victims were severely burned, identification required specialized forensic work. Authorities used DNA comparisons with close relatives and dental records when available. The bodies had initially been taken to Taiobeiras before being transferred to the forensic medicine unit in Belo Horizonte.
Among the victims publicly identified were Leôncio de Jesus Dias, 80, and Marinalva de Jesus Dias, 61. The couple had been returning home after visiting their children in Campinas, São Paulo state. Their remains were not released to their family until weeks after the crash because of the identification process. A July 15 update said two victims were still awaiting final forensic identification.
The crash also led to confusion over the whereabouts of one of the bus drivers. Washington de Jesus Durval, the reserve driver, was initially listed as missing after the collision. He was later located alive in Tobias Barreto, Sergipe, and was reported to be with relatives.
Investigators initially said the exact cause of the collision could not be determined until forensic analysis was completed. That changed after the police inquiry was finished in June.
On June 26, Minas Gerais Civil Police said the investigation found that the bus had entered the oncoming lane and collided head-on with the semi-truck. Police said forensic reports, technical surveys and witness statements supported that reconstruction of the crash.
The 41-year-old driver who was operating the bus was indicted on a Brazilian charge of negligent homicide while driving, which does not allege an intent to kill. Police sent the completed investigation to the judiciary and the Minas Gerais Public Prosecutor's Office for further review.
The driver's name was not publicly released in the later police update. An indictment by police is an investigative step and does not establish criminal guilt.
The bus was operated by Andreatur Transportes e Serviços Ltda. After the crash, the company said it had contacted its insurer and was providing assistance to injured passengers and the families of those who died.
The collision occurred on a two-lane section of BR-251 in northern Minas Gerais, a major route used by passenger vehicles and heavy trucks traveling between southeastern and northeastern Brazil. The force of the crash scattered part of the truck's cargo across the roadway. Early reports raised the possibility of a third vehicle because of debris at the scene, but firefighters later said the debris came from the truck's load and that only the bus and semi-truck were involved.
News story written by DarkGore.
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