Six people died and 48 were injured as a bus plunged into a ravine in central China's Hubei Province Friday, according to the local publicity authority.

The bus, carrying 54 people, fell off a section of a highway and rolled into a five-meter-deep ravine at about 10:40 a.m. in Xiangyang District of Xiangfan City, according to the publicity department of the district.

It said a heavy rain had made the road slippery and the bus was running fast.

Some passengers were threw out of the bus windows and some were crushed under the vehicle. The bus exploded several minutes later.

Six people were killed on the spot and 48 others were injured, including five seriously. The site of the accident had been cleared up by 6 p.m..

The bus belonged to the Xiangfan Yunxin Industrial Limited Corporation.

The injured people are being treated at the county's medical center and the police and work safety authorities are investigating the accident.

(Xinhua News Agency May 2, 2009)