The Council of State condemned the United Pentecostal Church of Colombia, the municipality of Fundación and its Transit Institute to pay millionaire compensation for the negligence that caused the fire of a bus, leaving 33 children dead a decade ago.
Colombia News
In a historic ruling, the Council of State declared the United Pentecostal Church of Colombia, the municipality of Fundación (Magdalena) and the Traffic and Transportation Institute of that town responsible for the tragedy that occurred on May 18, 2014, when a bus fire claimed the lives of 33 children and an elderly woman.
Failure details
The high court ordered collective compensation of 36,000 million pesosdistributed among the responsible entities:
• United Pentecostal Church of Colombia: 80% of the sentence.
• Foundation Municipality: 10%.
• Institute of Transit and Transportation Foundation: 10%.
The ruling concluded that the incident was the result of omissions and negligence. It was found that the bus, used to transport minors from a religious activity, lacked technical-mechanical inspection, Mandatory Traffic Accident Insurance (SOAT) and that its driver did not have a valid license.
The day of the tragedy
On May 18, 2014, the bus returned with 60 children and an adult after a religious activity organized by the Pentecostal Church. According to investigations, the driver manipulated gasoline to start the engine after running out of gas, causing the fire.
The Ángeles de Luz cemetery park, in Fundación, was built in memory of the 28 minors buried there.
The ruling highlights that the tragedy could have been avoided if basic prevention measures had been taken, such as requiring proper vehicle documentation and adopting safety protocols for minors.
The president of the Pentecostal Church, Héctor Campuzano, assured that they will abide by the ruling, although they do not share it. “The responsibility falls on those who provided the service, but we respect the court’s decision,” he stated.
For their part, the municipality and the Transit authorities must assume their proportional part of the sentence, as responsible for not guaranteeing the safety of citizens and allowing the bus to operate without the minimum legal requirements.
Fountain: State Council
Drafting: Leidy Lisbeth Pascuaza Barco
