The crash occurred Monday after heavy rains caused flooding that destroyed homes and covered vast expanses of farmland in two provinces near the capital Beijing.

Official news website The Paper said the bus driver ignored warnings not to attempt to cross the bridge that was almost covered by the surging floodwaters. Video posted online showed people on top of the almost-submerged bus as water was flowing over the nearby bridge outside the Hebei provincial capital of Shijiazhuang. In Shanxi province just west of Hebei, 15 people have died in floods that have caused a direct economic loss of more than 5 billion yuan ($770 million), CCTV reported. More than 120,000 people had been evacuated in the province as thousands of houses collapsed and 190,000 hectares (470,000 acres) of crops were damaged.

32 people killed, several injured in bus accident in Nepal

A passenger bus from Nepalgunj enroute to Gamgadhi in Nepal’s Mugu district skidded off the road and fell 300 metres down into Pina Jhyari river, killing at least 32 people and injuring many others.