Bus plunges into ravine, killing at least 12

MEXICO CITY — At least 12 people were killed and many more injured Friday morning when a passenger bus overturned on a highway west of the Mexican capital, according to government and media reports.

The crash occurred on a highway linking the Mexico City suburb of Naucalpan with the city of Toluca, according to a statement released by the Naucalpan municipal government.

The news service Milenio reported that the driver lost control of the bus at around 7 a.m., causing it to overturn and plunge into a ravine.

Municipal officials said that 15 people were injured. But some news reports put the number at more than 20, with many flown in helicopters to hospitals in Mexico City.

Among the dead were eight men, three women and a boy in a high-school uniform, according to the government statement.

An official said the bus driver may have been speeding.

By some measures, safety problems take a greater toll on Mexican residents than the country’s plague of organized crime and drug violence. In 2011, according to government statistics, more than 27,000 people died as a result of the violence. That same year, more than 36,000 Mexicans died in various accidents, including about 16,000 traffic accidents.