OMG , did anyone hear about the excursion off the Celebrity cruise ship? Here it is .
Authorities say all victims American; survivors in critical condition
Tour bus crashes, kills 12 American tourists (1:30)
FAMILY INFORMATION
Celebrity Cruises has set up two toll-free numbers for family members of cruise passengers:
Inside North America: 1-888-829-4050
Outside North America: 305-539-4050 (call collect)
SANTIAGO, Chile (CNN) -- A bus carrying tourists on a side trip through the mountains of northern Chile plunged into a canyon Wednesday, killing 12 people, all of them American, authorities said.
The bus was carrying 16 tourists from a Miami, Florida-based cruise ship, most of whom are believed to be American. Arica Mayor Patricia Perez announced the death toll, but local police said they would not confirm it until families had been notified.
John Vance, press attache to the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, confirmed that all of those killed were Americans.
Of those who survived the crash, some were in critical condition, said Maj. Carlos Valcarce, an Arica police spokesman. (
Watch the scene of the deadly crash -- :48)
Two Americans and two Chileans survived the crash, Perez said.
The crash occurred about 4:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m. ET). The tourists were among about 1,600 passengers from the Celebrity Cruises liner Millennium, which was docked in Arica as part of a two-week cruise that was slated to arrive back in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on April 2.
The bus was returning to the ship from a national park near the Bolivian border when it swerved off the highway and into a 260-foot canyon, Valcarce said. Survivors were transported to Dr. Juan Noe Regional Hospital in Arica, 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) north of Santiago. (
Map)
The ship was carrying about 1,536 guests and 920 crew members, the cruise line said. It will remain in Arica until further notice.
The passengers were on an independent excursion not affiliated with Celebrity Cruise, the company said in a statement. A doctor and nurse were sent from the ship to help tend to the injured, and the cruise company is working closely with police to determine the cause of the wreck, it said.
Ben got his card today and was so thrilled to get mail. It was an added bonus to see the US stamps and brag that he got mail all the way from the States. Thank you so much for thinking about him. 
Although he might on this trip. After all it's a family cruise and there there may be quite a breeze at sea.
The sun really reflects off the snow and the whole house is lit up. I have the feeling that I will finally find the last of the missing papers today and get my income tax done. It's just that kind of day. 
I don't know how it works down there, but you know how Canada is so well known for their taxes. Well the GST (goods & services tax) among others has got me. I have to keep track of all GST paid out all year, and wether it is just for the business, or used for something that in turn is sold again. I can only claim the last one. Sounds easy enough, but I haven't been keeping track. We've kind of had a mixed up horrible year. Add to that, we now have 160 acres (another long story for another time), so we are considered a farm and therefore have two GST numbers. Now to keep track of what goes where. I was hoping to have everything done and the money back before we left, but that just ain't happenin' now. I need one of those drinks that are posted, but I won't let myself until I get this done.
OMG! And we all run off to Canada to escape the US - silly us! We sat down with our accountant, were missing most of our papers but had the important stuff like how much we were paid, mortgage interest and the like, and basically..........well, let's not put it into writing. Let's just say the whole process was pretty breezy easy this year and we are getting a substantial return. 
I was a flower child back in the day....grew up in the 60's with the SF influence 
Its a good thing I grew up..... 
