Twelve university students dead in bus crash

Twelve university students died and 21 were injured in a collision between a bus and a truck in Brazil's southeastern state of Sao Paulo, officials said Friday.

"We wake up to the sad news of this tragedy that killed 12 students in a terrible accident involving a bus and a truck," State Governor Tarcisio Freitas wrote on X.

Sao Paulo civil defence authorities said in a statement that 21 injured people were taken to hospital after the crash late Thursday, but most were released.

One of the injured suffered from "cranial trauma" and three others were hospitalized and are in stable condition.

Freitas said the students were returning home from the private University of Franca (UNIFRAN) in the interior of the state when the accident occurred.

"They saw their dreams cut short," he said.

A statement from the state government said the truck driver -- who is hospitalized -- had been placed under arrest for "fleeing the scene, negligent homicide and negligent bodily harm."

Freitas has declared a three-day official mourning period, added the statement.

The university said in a statement it had suspended classes on Friday and also decreed a three-day mourning period.

"It is with great sadness and regret that we received the news that our students had their dreams cut short in a tragic accident," said the university.

In December 2024, 41 people died in a bus crash in the southeastern state of Minas Gerais, the worst accident on Brazil's federal highways since 2007.