At least 39 people died when a bus plunged into Italy from a motorway bridge. Now determined the prosecution.

The tour bus hit several cars that were slowed by heavy traffic before smashing through a guardrail and concrete barriers.

Witnesses said that the coach, which crashed near Avellino, appeared to suddenly lose control before smashing into the cars.

Many of the dead were discovered lying outside of the vehicle, while others were found inside the mangled wreckage.

Two people later died in hospital from their injuries. A number of children were also on the coach but so far they are not believed to be among the dead.

An investigation into possible manslaughter charges has begun, according to Italian media.

Rescuers with electric saws had worked through the night to cut through the twisted metal of the coach, stopping occasionally to listen for any cries for help.

The bodies of the dead were laid out on the roadside, covered in white sheets as emergency crews attended to the injured.

A number of wooden coffins were also brought to the scene.

The coach had been warned of heavy traffic ahead near Avellino, outside Naples, along a stretch of the A116 motorway, highway officials said.

Flashing signs near the flyover also warned vehicles to slow down.

Officials said the driver, for reasons not yet clear, appeared to have lost control of his vehicle.

Some witnesses told local media the coach was travelling at “normal speed” before suddenly veering off course, and describe hearing a noise as if the vehicle had blown a tyre.

However, journalist Tom Kington, who is at the scene, said there were some conflicting repots.

“Others are talking about it arriving on the flyover way too fast,” said Kington.

“There were signs apparently warning vehicles to slow down, there was thick traffic on the flyover.

“Some have said the bus came in too fast, didn’t have enough time to slow down, hence the smashing into the other vehicles.”

It is understood the driver of the coach is among the dead, a fire service spokesman said.

Reports said as many as 49 people had been aboard the coach when it ripped through barriers and fell 100ft (30m) into a ravine near a wooded area.

Despite the carnage, some passengers managed to walk away from the crash, said members of the emergency services.

“They’re talking also about the miraculous escape of 10 people from the wreckage of this bus,” said Tom Kington at  the scene.

“They’re saying ‘we can’t explain it’.

“People just got up and walked out of the wreckage, including, miraculously, a whole family of four.”

One car involved in the incident had its rear completely crumpled, while another was smashed on its side. It was not immediately known if anyone in those cars had been injured.

The A116 highway links western and eastern Italy across the south.

Early reports said the passengers had spent the day in Puglia, an area near the Adriatic on the east coast famed for religious shrines.

But later it was reported that the coach had been bringing the passengers home after an outing to a thermal spa near the town of Benevento, not far from Avellino.

Most of the passengers were from the Campania area around Naples, the Italian news agency ANSA said.

The coach came off the highway in a largely agricultural area about 30 miles inland from Naples and 150 miles south of Rome.

A local magistrate has arrived at the crash scene to begin an investigation into the cause of the crash.

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