Several deaths confirmed in horrific German Autobahn bus crash and fire

Reuters

Firefighters deal with aftermath of the crash between a lorry (foreground) and a coach (background)

German authorities have confirmed that several people died when a coach went up in flames after it collided with a lorry on a stretch of Autobahn.

The two vehicles collided on Monday morning near Muenchberg in Bavaria, southern Germany.

There were 48 people on board the coach - an unspecified number of whom have have been confirmed dead.

Police said the bus crashed into the lorry from behind at the back of a traffic jam. Fatalities were confirmed several hours later.

Reuters

Wreckage continues to smoulder at the crash site in Bavaria

A government spokesman said: "Unfortunately numerous people - a tour group from Saxony - lost their lives in this burning bus."

Police have said that 31 of the people involved in the crash were injured, but survived. An earlier statement said that 17 people were "unaccounted for", some of whom have since been pronounced dead.

Helicopters and ambulances were on the scene to rescue the injured and the A9 highway was closed in both directions because of the accident.