At least 19 people killed, 18 injured after bus collides with truck in northern Mexico

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

A collision between a passenger bus and a freight truck on a highway in northern Mexico Tuesday left at least 19 people dead and 18 injured, local authorities said.

Agents of the Federal Police stand guard next to a burnt passenger bus after it crashed with a truck at the Mazatlan-Culiacan highway in the community of La Cruz, Sinaloa state, Mexico. (AFP)

The accident occurred on a highway in the Pacific coast state of Sinaloa. Roy Navarrete, the director of the state civil defense office, said the crash occurred in the township of Elota, near the port city of Mazatlan.

The injured were being treated at local hospitals and the cause of the accident is under investigation.

There were 37 people aboard the bus. Photos of the scene showed both vehicles had been reduced to burnt-out metal frames.