Former Red Cross Paramedic Dies in Tragic Crash on Tulum-Playa del Carmen Highway

Akumal, Quintana Roo — A former Red Cross paramedic died Tuesday morning when a bus crashed into her snack delivery truck on the Tulum-Playa del Carmen highway, authorities reported.

Ginger Mariel, 41, was driving a Sabritas delivery truck on Federal Highway 307 near Akumal around 7 a.m. when a Del Valle company bus struck her vehicle from behind. The impact caused the delivery truck to catch fire, trapping Mariel inside.

Emergency services received the initial report through the 911 system. Preliminary reports indicate the bus driver may have fallen asleep at the wheel.

Firefighters, paramedics, and police officers responded to the scene and performed emergency operations. Medical personnel declared Mariel dead at the site.

Fourteen people on the bus sustained injuries in the crash. Paramedics treated the injured at the scene and transported them to various hospitals in the region for medical attention.

Multiple Red Cross delegations in Quintana Roo expressed condolences on social media after confirming Mariel’s identity. She had served as a paramedic with the Playa del Carmen delegation.

“We join the pain that overwhelms family and friends in the face of this irreparable loss,” the organization stated in its messages.

Mariel’s family held a wake at the San José funeral home in Playa del Carmen on Tuesday night. According to relatives, she will be buried Wednesday in a municipal cemetery.