LIMA, Peru (AP) — Two buses crashed into each other Saturday in southern Peru killing at least five people and injuring another 16, authorities said.

The head-on collision took place along the southern Panamerican Highway in the town of Tacna, near the border with Chile, police told The Associated Press.

Eddy Vicente, director of the Hipólito Unanue de Tacna hospital, told reporters that the majority of those injured are stable, while a 24-year-old man is in serious condition with multiple fractures.

It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the crash.

Farmer Agustín Choquecota, who said he was driving a pickup truck transporting livestock, asserted in an interview with Radio Unio that he was dragged along by the impact after one of the buses involved in the accident veered out of its lane.

Road transportation oversight in Peru is weak, and emergency assistance is slow and disorganized, according to experts who believe the solution lies in legal reform. Official data shows that 3,428 people died in traffic accidents in 2025.

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