PLEASE NOTE, THIS EDIT CONTAINS CONVERTED 4:3 MATERIAL.
ROUGH CUT - NO REPORTER NARRATION
An overloaded tourist bus has crashed on a highway in southwest China on Wednesday (January 4), killing at least 18 people, according to state media reports.
The bus with 57 passengers on board plunged into a nine-metre-deep ditch along an expressway linking eastern Zhejiang Province to southwestern Sichuan Province, the Chinese official Xinhua News Agency said.
Fifteen people were killed instantly. Three died later in hospital.
More have been injured.
The capacity of the bus was 53, but it was carrying 57, including four children.
The rainy and snowy weather may have contributed to the accident. Local officials also allege speeding and inappropriate driving played a part.
It's the second bus crush in China in the new year.
On Tuesday a heavy truck hit a coach on the expressway in central Hunan Province, killing 13 people and injuring more than 40, according to Xinhua.
Chinese lunar New Year travel peak is yet to come between January 8 to February 16.
About 2.85 billion people are expected to take to the roads during that time, said Xinhua.
