36 killed in China tanker collision

Thirty six people have died after a double-decker bus rammed into a tanker loaded with highly-flammable methanol in northern China, causing both vehicles to burst into flames.

The official Xinhua News Agency said 39 people were on the long distance sleeper bus when it crashed and only three survived. .

The tanker had just returned to the road after an early morning rest stop when it was apparently rear-ended by the bus, close to the city of Yan'an in Shaanxi province, the official China News website said.

The bus had left Hohhot in Inner Mongolia and was headed south to Xi'an city, it said.

Xinhua news photos showed the charred metal skeleton of the bus rammed up against the back of the tanker.