Seventeen people are dead and 13 are in hospital after a bus carrying Latin American migrants crashed on a Mexican highway.

Grim images show survivors being pulled from the mangled vehicle on the roadside in the locality of Cuacnopalan, Puebla State, on 19th February.

Others sit shell-shocked beside the wreckage amid what seem to be the bodies of some of the passengers who died.

The rear end of the bus seems to have suffered catastrophic damage in the smash.

Some officials say the vehicle rolled over before coming to a halt.

The passengers are reported to be migrants from Venezuela, Colombia, and Central America.

At the time of writing, it was still not clear what had caused the bus – reportedly carrying 45 passengers – to crash.

In one picture, a huge skid mark can be seen crossing the motorway and the driver, reported local media, is said to have lost control of the steering.

However, mechanical failure and a possible collision with another vehicle are also being investigated.

Some have also suggested that the bus driver – who died with his assistant – may have been speeding.

At the time of reporting, authorities were still working to identify the dead.

However, media in Latin America say that at least 10 were Colombian nationals.

According to reports, 15 died at the scene, while a further two died later in hospital.

Of the 13 still in hospital, five are reported to be in critical condition.

The private bus was travelling from Tapachula, near the border with Guatemala, to Mexico City when it crashed.

The local prosecutor’s office reported that the bus had overturned.

Colombia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs that so far, the Mexican authorities have informed us that among the victims is a 56-year-old man of Colombian nationality, who died in the accident and who has already been identified by his son.

“On the other hand, another 30-year-old Colombian citizen, who is in good health and is available to the immigration authorities of Oaxaca, has been identified.

“Likewise, three injured Colombians are reported at the General Hospital of Tehuacan: two men, 23 and 37 years old, and a 36-year-old woman, with a delicate but stable diagnosis.

“The Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through the Consulate in Mexico City, remains on alert and in contact with the authorities and the General Hospital of Tehuacan, Puebla State, for new reports of injured and deceased people to provide all the necessary and pertinent help.”

Mexican police are investigating the crash.