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13 Venezuelans among 16 dead in Nicaragua bus crash

MEXICO CITY (AP) — At least 16 people were killed in a bus crash in northwestern Nicaragua, including 13 Venezuelans, National Police said Thursday.

A Nicaraguan citizen was also among the dead and the other two fatalities had not yet been identified, according to a police statement.

The accident occurred late Wednesday on the Pan-American Highway, about 100 miles north of the capital, Managua. Police said the bus was speeding and collided with two other vehicles before going off the road and down a steep hill.

The aged bus came to rest on its roof at the bottom of the embankment below a flattened guardrail. Clothing, including children's shoes, were strewn about the crash site.

The police did not say what status the Venezuelans had in Nicaragua.

Venezuelans have been migrating through Central America in growing numbers since Mexico imposed a visa requirement on them in late January. Previously those trying to reach the U.S. would fly to Mexico as tourists and then make their way north.