20 Chilean soldiers die in bus crash: Report

Santiago (Chile), Nov 13: At least 20 Chilean soldiers died around midday today when the bus they were traveling in plunged off a bridge into a river in the south of the country, local media reported.

The accident happened near the village of Canete, some 375 miles (600 km) south of the capital Santiago, during torrential rain, private radio station Radio Cooperativa reported.

Around 30 soldiers were believed to be on the bus at the time of the accident, the station said.

In May last year, 45 Chilean soldiers died in a ferocious snowstorm in the southern Andes, which run along Chile's eastern border. That death toll was the worst suffered by the Chilean army in a single incident in peace time.

Reuters