Bus Plows Into Crowd In Haiti, Killing At Least 34

By Laurel Wamsley / NPR

Published March 12, 2017 at 9:54 AM PDT

This story was published more than 7 years ago.

Gonaives, a city in northern Haiti, is seen in May 2016. On Sunday morning, a bus crashed into a parade in the city, killing at least 34 people and injuring 17.

A bus plowed into a crowd of people in northern Haiti around 3 a.m. Sunday morning, killing at least 34 people and injuring 17.

The bus was driving from Cap Haitien to Port-au-Prince when it crashed into a "rara" parade in the city of Gonaives, reports the AP.

Rara is a type of Haitian music played on traditional instruments, with onlookers often joining in the procession.

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Reuters reports that the driver and passengers are being held by police. Following the accident, people began throwing rocks at the bus and other vehicles.

The BBC reports further:

Witnesses gathered at the scene became hostile after seeing the driver attempt to flee, which caused further deaths and injuries, AFP reports, adding that they then tried to set the vehicle alight. "The people who were not victims of the accident tried to burn the bus with the passengers inside," said Faustin Joseph, a civic protection co-ordinator for the Artibonite region.