BEIJING: At least 35 people, including two children, died after a tour bus crashed and caught fire in central China, state media reported on Sunday.

Police detained the driver of the bus, which was carrying 55 people in Hunan province, said the official Xinhua news agency. Eleven people were hospitalised after the crash, with four people seriously injured, Xinhua reported.

The bus crashed into a guardrail on a highway and the fire started after an oil leak, said Xinhua, citing local authorities. State television showed images of the charred bus.