At least 53 dead after bus falls into gorge in India

Sept. 12 (UPI) -- At least 53 people are dead after a bus veered off road and plunged into a gorge, authorities in the state of Telangana said Tuesday.

Police said the bus's brakes failed and the driver, who died in the crash, lost control of the vehicle before it fell into the gorge.

"Most of the deaths seem to have occurred due to suffocation, as the passengers fell over one another," police said, according to the Hindustan Times.

Officials told the BBC that the bus was speeding and was at overcapacity -- carrying 86 passenger on a bus designed to carry only 60.

Telangana's chief minister, K Chandrasekhar Rao, said families of victims will receive 500,000 rupees -- about $6,862 -- as compensation

Bus accidents are common in India.

In 2017, an average of 29 people each day died in accidents involving buses. Of the more than 10,000 victims, 86 percent were bus passengers.