Horror as 39 killed and 36 wounded as bus plunges off road into ravine in Panama

AT LEAST 39 have died and 36 are wounded after a bus fell off a cliff and into a ravine in Panama.

The horror crash happened when the bus carrying migrants fell off a cliff in Panama's Chiriquí province in the early hours of this morning.

The bus, carrying more than 60 migrants, was on its way through Darién in eastern Panama to Los Planes de Gualaca shelter, near the Costa Rican border - apparently on route to the US.

The death toll is already at 39, while 36 are injured and receiving urgent medical attention.

Of those injured, there are 19 men, 5 women and 12 children.

According to initial reports, the bus missed the entrance to the shelter and as the driver tried to turn the vehicle around it fell from the cliff into a ravine.

“The bus driver missed the entrance and turned around to go back to the shelter, at which point he fell onto a slope,” said Samira Gozaine, director of the Migration Service.

The nationalities of the victims have not yet been released.

The Minister of Public Security, Juan Manuel Pino, said that so far this year 37,000 migrants have tried to pass through the Darién jungle to reach the US,

“It's a constant flow,” he said.

"The Government of Panama is providing medical attention to the injured," President Laurentino Cortizo said on Twitter.

The president added: "This news is unfortunate for Panama and for the region.

"The National Government extends its condolences to the families of those killed in this accident, and reiterates its commitment to continue providing humanitarian aid and decent conditions to deal with irregular migration."