A tour bus carrying German tourists has crashed on Portugal's Madeira Island, killing 29 people and injuring 27 others, local authorities say.
The bus carrying 55 people rolled down a steep hillside after veering off the road on a bend east of the capital, Funchal, and struck at least one house around 6.30pm local time.
The victims included 17 women and 11 men, with authorities confirming one more person died a short time later.
The driver reportedly lost control of the bus on the sloping road and the vehicle plunged down the hill, according to Portuguese news agency Lusa.
Regional president Miguel Albuquerque offered his condolences to the families of victims who, he said, included "many foreigners".
"I have no words to describe what happened. I cannot face the suffering of these people," he said.
He said the tourists on the bus were all German but some pedestrians might have been hit by the bus. It's understood all of the tourists involved in the crash were aged between 40-50.
Other members of the same group of German tourists were travelling on another bus, which was not involved in the accident, a regional civil protection spokesman told a news conference.
Portugal's public prosecutor's office plans to open an investigation into the crash.
Pedro Calado, the vice president of Madeira's regional government, told a news conference the injured, including the Portuguese driver and a local tour guide, were taken to a local hospital.
The bus carrying 55 people rolled down a steep hillside after veering off the road on a bend. Source: AP
Pictures from the scene show the bus overturned in what looks like a relatively built up area, surrounded by firefighters and emergency service crews.
Local television showed bodies scattered over the hillside next to the Atlantic Ocean.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa said he had sent condolences to German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
"I learned of this tragic accident in Madeira with deep sorrow," he said.
"I express the sorrow and solidarity of all the Portuguese people in this tragic moment, and especially for the families of the victims who I have been told were all German."
A spokesperson for the German leader said: "terrible news is reaching us from Madeira".
Emergency services at the scene of the crash. Source: AP
Steffen Seibert said on Twitter that "we are in deepest sorrow over all those who lost their lives in the bus crash".
He added: "Our thoughts are with the injured."
Germany's foreign ministry said its embassy in Portugal's capital, Lisbon, was in contact with local authorities in Madeira. Seibert said the government has set up a telephone hotline for people worried about family members.
Residents said the weather was fine at the time of the accident, which happened in daylight in the early evening.
