Bus plunges off cliff in Peru, killing at least 15

At least 15 people were killed when a bus plunged into a ravine in central Peru during heavy rain, authorities said.

The accident took place Saturday in Yauya district, a remote part of the Ancash region in central Peru, north of Lima.

Fifteen people have been confirmed dead, and the bus was carrying 22, so the toll could rise, police said.

Rain and poor visibility were impeding recovery efforts, they said.

Traffic accidents are common and often deadly in this country of 30 million, which rises from coastal desert to the towering Andes and encompasses tropical Amazon basin lowlands.

In 2016, 493 people were killed in 3,876 traffic accidents, highway police said.