Bus plunge kills 24 in southwest China

Beijing, Apr 23: A bus plunged 20 metres (65 feet) off a highway overpass in southwest China today killing at least 24 people, state media said.

It was the second serious traffic accident in Chongqing, a mountainous metropolis of 30 million people, in 10 days.

''Twenty-two people were killed on the spot and two died in hospital,'' state television said. Seven were injured, five seriously.

A pile-up of 52 vehicles, mostly trucks, killed five people and injured 36 on a Chongqing highway on April 13.

A vehicls plunged off a bridge in Chonqqing last October, killing 30 people and injuring more than 20.

Reuters