Colombo: A passenger bus plunged into a ravine in a mountainous area of Sri Lanka, killing 15 people and injuring 16 others, a police spokesman said on Friday.
The accident occurred on Thursday night near the town of Wellawaya, about 280 kilometers east of the capital Colombo, and the bus fell into a ravine about 1,000 feet deep, police spokesman Friedrich Wuttler said.
The accident killed 15 people and injured 16 others, including five children.
The driver was driving the bus at high speed and lost control. Wuttler said that a preliminary investigation revealed that the bus fell off a cliff after colliding with another vehicle.
At the time of the accident, about 30 people were travelling in the bus.
The bus, which fell into the ravine, was completely destroyed, local media showed. Rescue workers, including soldiers, police officers and volunteers, worked through the night to rescue the injured and send them to hospital.
Fatal bus accidents are common in Sri Lanka, especially in mountainous areas, due to reckless driving, poor maintenance and narrow roads.