Mexico City (dpa) - At least 21 people were killed when a bus plummeted
200 meters off a mountain highway in the Mexican state of Hidalgo,
provincial police said late Monday.

"The scene is devastating," said civil defense chief Miguel Garcia
Conde. "Rescue teams saw at least three children among the dead, but
the majority are young adults."

About 20 people were injured in the accident, police said. The
accident occurred along a winding section of the highway about 150
kilometers north of the Mexican capital. Reportedly, rescue efforts on
the steep terrain were difficult. The cause of the accident remains
unknown.

Regional authorities have set the death toll as high as 27, as yet civil defense has been unable to confirm that number. (dpa)