A bus carrying school children in eastern France crashed on Friday morning, French media reported.

At least two people were killed, a child and a young adult, and 16 others were injured in the incident, including three seriously injured.

French broadcaster BFMTV reported that the incident happened close to the town of Lent in the department of Ain and that two people were seriously injured.

"It is always a difficult moment when our students, our children, are victims of an accident like this. My thoughts, and those of the government and the entire education community, are with the families," Education Minister Edouard Geffray told reporters while visiting a high school in the Paris region.

What do we know so far about the bus crash in France?

Lent Mayor Yves Cristin said the bus went off the road and crashed into a tree in a ditch around 7 a.m. (0600 GMT).

Some 100 firefighters and 50 police officers were deployed, with the road around the scene of the incident being closed.

"This is an absolute tragedy that has struck our community," Cristin told BFMTV. "The accident occurred in a location on the road where there are no major difficulties."

"The road was slightly damp, and we don't understand why the bus left its lane, crossed the road, and ended up in the opposite ditch," he added.

"Unfortunately, there was a tree in its path, and it was this tree that made the accident so tragic."

He added that the side of the bus had been torn off "and clearly, the people who ​were on that ‌side must have been seriously injured."

A local community hall was opened to shelter the victims of the crash.

Prosecutors said the bus had been carrying 43 passengers, including 15 minors, travelling between Lyon and Bourg-en-Bresse.

They added that an investigation into homicide by vehicle had been opened, but the driver, who was hospitalized after the crash, has not yet been questioned.