Aircraft sent to help survivors of Montenegro bus crash that has killed 18 and left more injured

Bus carrying Romanian tourists fell from notorious bridge

Bus carrying Romanian tourists fell from notorious bridge in Montenegro (Reuters)

Romania authorities have sent an aircraft to bring home survivors of a bus crash which killed 18 Romanian tourists in central Montenegro on Monday.

Defence minister Mircea Dusa confirmed today that the plane left Bucharest bound for Montenegro's capital Podgorica, where 28 injured passengers were hospitalised.

The bus fell from a bridge over the Moraca river and crashed 40 metres into a ravine on Sunday. It was not immediately clear what caused the driver to lose control when the bus broke through the fence on one side of the bridge.

Police initially said on Sunday that 13 people were killed, but the number of fatalities grew to 18 overnight. Forensic pathologist Miodrag Soc added that the victims will be identified by their families.

Altogether 29 people were injured, including a child who was at the bridge at the time of the crash, officials said.

The winding road leading from Serbia in the north through to the Moraca canyon and then onto the seacoast is notorious for traffic accidents because it is narrow, and slippery in wet weather.

Additional reporting by agencies