Bus flips over in Mexico; 11 dead

CANCUN, Mexico — A bus carrying cruise ship passengers on an excursion to Mayan ruins in southeastern Mexico flipped over on a narrow highway yesterday, killing 11 travelers and their guide and injuring at least 20 others, officials said.

Seven Americans and two Swedes were among the injured, said Vicente Martin, spokesman for the Quintana Roo state Civil Defense agency. Authorities had not yet established the nationalities of the dead last night.

The bus ended up on its side in vegetation along the two-lane road. Video taken after the crash showed some survivors lying on the pavement and others walking around. One body lay on the roadside covered by a white sheet or other object, as the crash scene was cordoned off with yellow police tape.

Miami-based Royal Caribbean Cruises said in a statement that passengers from two of its ships, the Celebrity Equinox and Serenade of the Seas, were on the bus. The U.S. Embassy in Mexico said U.S. officials were working with local authorities to determine whether American citizens were among the dead.

Martin said investigators were working to determine the cause of the crash, which occurred as the bus was on its way to the ruins at Chacchoben, about 110 miles south of Tulum.

An official with the local prosecutor’s office said the fatalities included 11 tourists and a Mexican guide.