AT LEAST 38 people have been killed in a horror crash after a packed bus collided with a lorry in Brazil before bursting into flames.
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva described the fatal smash as a “terrible tragedy” with harrowing images showing the burnt out bus left on the side of the road.
The burnt out wreckage of the bus after the collision[/caption]
A car was also trapped underneath the lorry[/caption]
Debris was sent flying across the road in the horror crash with bus seats seen strewn across the ground[/caption]
The coach, carrying 45 passengers, caught on fire after one of its tyres suddenly blew out and sent the motor out of control, horrified witnesses said.
The driver battled to keep it on the road before it ploughed into an oncoming lorry.
Dozens of the passengers were ultimately killed along with the driver as the bus smashed off the concrete road.
Moments later the impact sparked a deadly inferno.
Footage shows firefighters putting out the burning bus wreckage as it laid on the side of the busy main road in the country’s eastern state of Minas Gerais.
Other onlookers also told rescue teams that the bus hit a granite block as it spiralled out of control.
The lorry was left in a severely damaged state with pictures showing it appeared to collide with a separate car just seconds after the initial crash.
The small car was crushed underneath the weight of the truck but the driver and two passengers are said to have miraculously escaped.
The truck driver later fled the scene, say local media.
Another 13 people were taken to hospital following the crash, the local fire department said.
Mr da Silva added in a statement: “I deeply regret and send my prayers to the families of the more than 30 fatalities from the accident in Teofilo Otoni, Minas Gerais.
“I pray for the recovery of the survivors of this terrible tragedy.”
Local governor Romeu Zema wrote on X that he had ordered “full mobilisation” of the Minas Gerais government to help the victim’s loved ones.
More than 10,000 people have tragically died in traffic accidents in Brazil this year alone.
Firefighters inspect the wreckage[/caption]
A crane works to move the bus from the side of the road[/caption]