Passenger car collides with bus, 20 people die

A tragic traffic accident on Christmas Day has claimed the lives of at least 20 people in the Philippines, injuring 26 others.

The passenger car was badly damaged after the accident. Photo: CNN/LTRB

CNN quoted police sources as saying that the accident happened early on the morning of December 25 on MacArthur Road in Agoo town, 200km north of the Philippine capital Manila.

Agoo police official Eugenio Balagot said the accident occurred between a passenger van carrying 29 passengers and a bus carrying 31 passengers.

Initial investigation shows that the passenger bus overtook the vehicle and crashed into a bus going in the opposite direction.

The collision killed 20 people - all passengers on the bus, including a 5-month-old baby, a first-grader and two teenagers.

Nine people on the coach and 17 people on the bus were also injured, but the bus passengers mostly suffered only minor injuries and have been released from hospital.

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

According to Tuoi Tre