Philippines bus crash kills 9, injures 8

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SCIENCE CITY OF MUNOZ, Philippines, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- A bus, fuel tanker and motorcycle collided in the Philippines, killing nine people and injuring eight others, police said.

Science City of Munoz police chief, Supt. Michael Angelo Zuniga, said the Victory Liner bus carrying 44 passengers and two drivers swerved to avoid hitting a motorcycle and struck the fuel tanker Wednesday in the village of Bantug in central Luzon.

Police could not say which of the larger vehicles struck the motorcycle, instantly killing its two riders.

The bus driver and tanker driver were also killed in the accident, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported. Five bus passengers were reported killed.

Ronnie Calica, the second bus driver, denied the possibility the driver at the time of the accident was sleep-deprived behind the wheel.

"He just relieved me in San Jose City. It was my turn to sleep and I was awakened when I fell off my seat," Calica said.

The bus was was bound for Metro Manila, the newspaper reported.