UPDATE - 21 killed, 35 injured when bus plunges off cliff in Sri Lanka: Report

UPDATES WITH LATEST NUMBER OF CASUALTIES; REVISES HEADLINE, LEDE, EDITS THROUGHOUT

By Anadolu staff

ANKARA (AA) - At least 21 people were killed and over 35 were injured when a passenger bus plunged off a cliff in Sri Lanka's Central province on Sunday, local media reports said.

According to the local police, more than 35 passengers were injured in the crash and were treated at regional hospitals, the Daily Mirror newspaper reported.

Police said that the bus was carrying 75 passengers from the southern pilgrimage site of Kataragama to the northwestern town of Kurunegala when it plunged 100 meters off a cliff, according to the Free Press Journal.

An investigation into the cause of the accident has been launched, police said.

Road accidents are frequent in the South Asian island nation, with official data showing that buses are often involved.

Nearly 600 Sri Lankans have died in 565 fatal road accidents so far this year, according to police data.

According to government data cited by Newswire, a person dies in a road accident every three hours in Sri Lanka.

*Writing by Aamir Latif