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April 17 (UPI) -- More than two dozen people in a tour bus crash Wednesday on the Portuguese island of Madeira. The bus crashed in the city of Santa Cruz while carrying a group of tourists, killing at least 28 people and injuring as many as 22, Portuguese news agency Lusa reported.
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The area was cordoned off and Portugal's National Institute of Forensic Medicine and Forensic sciences was sending a team from the mainland to assist a large ambulance response to treat the victims.
"I have no words to describe what happened. I cannot face the suffering of these people," Santa Cruz Mayor Filipe Sousa said.
German media reported that the majority of the victims on the bus were believed to be German, although no nationalities were immediately confirmed, according to The Telegraph.
The bus was traveling to Funchal, carrying 55 passengers and a guide.
The driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle on a turn and veered off the road before crashing onto the top of a house. Residents said the weather was clear at the time.
Portuguese President Marcelo Sousa announced he was traveling to Madeira in response to the incident.
