They were returning home after days of hard work, thinking about family, rest, and a temporary pause from sacrifice. Instead, they met a truck that, according to experts, should never have been in their lane. On a dark, rainy stretch already marked by tragedies, the impact was so violent that many never had a chance to react. Rescue teams fought against time and chaos, while forensic experts worked in silence among twisted metal and scattered belongings, trying to restore names and stories to bodies that arrived without identification.

As the investigation advances, harsh questions refuse to fade. Why was a van without authorization carrying interstate passengers on such a dangerous road? Could stricter inspections, better road maintenance or tougher control over heavy vehicles have avoided the collision? The official report may indicate who will answer in court, but nothing will fill the absence at the tables in Ceará and the Northeast, where families wait for justice and cling to the hope that this tragedy will not be reduced to just another statistic on BR-251.