Rio de Janeiro, Aug 17 (IANS) At least eight people were killed and 23 injured when the bus they were tarvelling in fell into a ravine in Brazil’s Amazon region, Spain’s EFE news agency reported Sunday. The accident took place Saturday morning on a highway near the border with Venezuela, highway patrol officials said.

The driver lost control of the bus while trying to avoid a head-on collision with a truck coming from the opposite direction on a curve, officials said.

There were 37 passengers on board the bus at the time of the accident. Rescuers have retrieved eight bodies from the site. The injured were rushed to a hospital.

Seven people were killed on the spot, while a 44-year-old woman died following a heart attack while being taken to the hospital in Mucajai, an official said.