A total of 19 soldiers died and 42 were injured when their bus plunged into a ravine early Wednesday on the road between Shiraz and Kerman in southern Iran, ISNA reported. According to reports, all the deceased were conscripts doing their military service that is mandatory in Iran. They were heading to the southern city of Ahvaz from a garrison in Kerman. Morteza Salimi, an official with the Rescue and Relief Organization, announced that 16 of the conscripts died on the spot and three on the way to or on arrival at the hospital. Mojtaba Khaledi, Iran’s Emergency Services spokesman said that 13 of the 42 injured are in a critical condition. Iran’s chief of road police Mohammad Hossein Hamidi said the bus driver’s incompetence in controlling the vehicle coupled with the road’s bad condition resulted in the tragic accident. In a separate accident on the same day and on the same route, another bus carrying draftees from the same garrison in Kerman derailed and crashed injuring six soldiers. They are said to be recovering at nearby hospitals.
