Dozens killed in Peru as bus veers off highway and plunges over a cliff

AT LEAST 44 people are dead after a double-decker bus veered off a highway and over a cliff in Southern Peru and plunged 200 metres into a rocky ravine.

Police have confirmed that at least 44 people were killed and at least two dozen people have been injured. However, the death toll may rise.

Highway Police chief Jorge Castillo told the Associated Press that the death toll has risen and that officers are still counting bodies. Police say they’re not sure how many people were on-board the bus.

Air Force helicopters are helping to rescue survivors and transport them to safety.

The accident took place before dawn on Wednesday near a river in the coastal province of Camana.

The cause wasn’t immediately known, but accidents caused by reckless driving on poorly maintained mountain roads claim dozens of lives every year in Peru.

In January 52 people were killed in the country’s worst road fatality in four decades.