MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Millennium passengers killed in Chile bus accident

A tour bus swerved to avoid an approaching truck and tumbled 300 feet down a mountainside in northern Chile, killing 12 American tourists and injuring two others, U.S. and Chilean officials said.

Two Chileans - the driver and the tour guide - also were hospitalized, said Juan Carlos Poli, a city hall spokesman in the Pacific port city of Arica.

The tourists were returning to Celebrity Cruises' ship Millennium from an excursion to Lauca National Park when the bus plunged off the rugged highway Wednesday near Arica, 1,250 miles north of Santiago, he said.

Poli said the bus, which had a capacity of 16 passengers, "was totally destroyed." Poli also said the injured Americans were "conscious and have been able to talk to doctors," although he added their were concerns because of their age. The victims were all in their 60s and 70s, authorities said.

Those killed in the accident include Miriam Diamond (75), Linda Greenfield (63), Hans Eggers (72), Maria Eggers (72), Barbara Rubin (69), Arthur Kovar (76), Frieda Kovar (64), Robert Robin (72), Carole Rochelman (64), Bier Schirley (66), Marvin Bier (69), and Ira Greenfield (68). The two tourists in critical condition are Harold Ruchelman and Bernard Diamond. Driver Cristian Contreras Guzmán and guide Iván Guerra Morales each had less serious injuries. The driver Guzmán's life was apparently saved because was wearing his seat belt, while Guerra attributed his survival to sheer good fortune, noting that for some reason he was not thrown out of the minivan as it careened down the 300 meter deep ravine.

Celebrity Cruises President Dan Hanrahan told reporters in Miami the victims were part of a 64-member B'nai B'rith group on vacation.

Of the injured tourists, one broke a leg and the other broke a hand, said Dr. Mauricio Lynn of Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami. Both men were in stable condition but were being observed at a hospital as a precaution.

U.S. Embassy spokesman John Vance said consular officers were being sent to Arica.

The Millennium was docked in Arica. It had been scheduled to leave for Peru early Thursday, but the departure was delayed until the evening to allow guests to make other arrangements if they wished, Hanrahan said. The ship was carrying 1,536 guests and 920 crew members.

The accident occurred 25 miles northeast of Arica on the road leading deep into the high Andes Mountains, connecting the coast with the Bolivian capital of La Paz.

The cruise line said it was offering to fly family members of victims to Chile and sending a special assistance team to the ship to help its guests and crew.

"We continue to work with Chilean authorities and the U.S. Consulate in Santiago to assist our injured guests and the family members of those who died in this tragic accident," Hanrahan said earlier.

The ship was on a 14-night South American cruise. It departed Valparaiso, Chile, on Sunday and was scheduled to conclude in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on April 2.

Poli said doctors performed autopsies of six of the victims during the night and the remaining six were expected to be completed shortly so the bodies could be sent home as soon as possible.

Celebrity Cruises, which is owned by Miami-based Royal Caribbean Cruises, said the private tour was not affiliated with the cruise line.