The accident occurred near Freginals, about 150 kilometers (95 miles) south of Barcelona in Catalonia. The bus was returning from a traditional "Fallas" festival in the eastern city of Valencia. The crash occurred at around 6:00 am local time (05:00 UTC/GMT)

The students killed in the accident were enrolled at Barcelona University as part of the EuropeanErasmus exchange program. More than 30 others were injured in the incident, with the majority not sustaining life-threatening injuries. There were a total of 57 people on the bus, including the driver.

The driver survived the collision and was taken to a local police station for questioning.

The driver "hit the railing on the right and swerved to the left so violently that the bus veered onto the other side of the highway," Catalonia's regional interior minister Jordi Jane said. The bus then reportedly hit a vehicle coming in the opposite direction, injuring two people inside, he added.

Jane could not immediately confirm the nationalities of the deceased nor the cause of the accident.

ss/gsw (AFP, AP, Reuters)