Several injured when tourist bus plunges off mountain road in north Spain

Emergency services members attend to an injured person after a tourist bus carrying 48 people, including children, crashed on a road in Cangas de Onis, in the northern region of Asturias, Spain, July 31, 2023. Guardia Civil/Handout via REUTERS

MADRID (Reuters) - A bus packed with tourists en route to a popular nature spot in northern Spain's Asturias region plunged off a mountain road on Monday, leaving several people seriously injured, emergency services said.

The driver and 48 passengers were believed to have been in the bus when it went off the road for unknown reasons, an emergency services spokesperson said.

Firefighters were working at the site of the accident in Cangas de Onis. No people were trapped inside, the emergency services said in a statement.

Two witnesses said the bus rolled over twice and landed on its side, the statement added.

A police spokesperson said 10 people in total had been hospitalised, seven of them with serious injuries, though the condition of the remaining passengers was still unknown.

The emergency services spokesperson said the exact number of injured was not yet known. Two women were taken to different hospitals by helicopter. There were no details on the nationalities of the passengers.

Footage provided by police showed several passengers being carried into ambulances on stretchers.

The bus belonging to the company ALSA was covering the route between the picturesque town of Covadonga and the nearby glacial lakes in the Picos de Europa national park, known for its lush landscapes and rich wildlife.

(Reporting by David Latona; Editing by Aislinn Laing and Angus MacSwan)