At Least 16 Dead and 20 Injured After Bus Crashed Off a Cliff, Authorities Say Driver May Have Experienced a ‘Microsleep’

At least 16 people were killed and 20 others were injured after a school bus crashed and went off a cliff in Colombia.

On Sunday, Dec. 14, Andrés Julián, governor of Colombia’s Antioquia state, said in a post on X that the bus was carrying students from Antioqueño High School. The group had been traveling from the Caribbean town of Tolú back to Medellín after a trip when the vehicle crashed and “fell into an abyss.”

“So far, more than a dozen people are reported deceased and 20 injured. The entire hospital network has been activated to attend to and support this emergency,” Julián wrote in Spanish.

Local newspaper El Colombiano and the Daily Mail reported that the crash happened around 5:40 a.m. local time on Sunday on a road in the rural northern area of El Chispero.

The cause has not been confirmed, but authorities have suggested the driver may have suffered a “microsleep,” El Colombiano reported. The Cleveland Clinic describes microsleep as a brief lapse in consciousness — often around 30 seconds — in which a person loses and then regains awareness.

Reports indicate the bus was carrying at least 37 passengers and rolled about 80 meters (roughly 262 feet) down the cliff, according to El Colombiano.

The high school said the outing was not an official school activity and was instead organized by 11th-grade students.

Colombia’s Ministry of Health and Social Inclusion later identified the injured in a series of X posts, stating they included four adults and 12 minors.

El Colombiano also reported that Segovia’s mayor, Edwin Castañeda, said victims were taken to two hospitals, including one in Segovia and the San Vicente de Paúl Hospital in Remedios.

Among those killed was the driver, identified as Johnatan Taborda Cocacolo.

In a social media post, Antioqueño High School said it “deeply regretted what happened to our students and their families.”

“Students from the graduating class of 2025 who participated in the graduation trip, we embrace them in this moment of great sorrow and offer our support to our entire community,” the school wrote, alongside a photo of a black ribbon symbolizing mourning.

In a press release cited by the Daily Mail, the National Road Safety Agency said it “deeply regrets the road accident that occurred on the Segovia-Antioquia highway.”

“At this time, the competent authorities are conducting investigations to determine the causes of the accident and confirm the number of fatalities and injuries,” the agency said, according to the outlet.

“The Ministry of Transportation and the National Road Safety Agency reiterate that the conscious and responsible behavior of all road users saves lives,” the statement continued. “We remind everyone of the importance of respecting traffic laws and avoiding risky behavior on the roads, in order to prevent tragedies like this one, which deeply impact Colombian families.”