JOHANNESBURG: Paramedics say a bus has plunged off a bridge in South Africa, killing at least 19 people and injuring 55.

Netcare Limited spokesman Jeffrey Wicks says the death toll likely will rise. He says 21 people have been hospitalized with three in critical condition.

Wicks said the bus was on a bridge in the small town of Meyerton on Monday when the driver apparently lost control of the bus which then crashed through aluminum barriers and fell several meters (feet) into a ravine. Those killed were trapped in the vehicle. AGENCIES