Johannesburg | At least 42 people were killed in a bus crash in a mountainous region of northern South Africa, authorities said Monday.

The crash happened on Sunday on the N1 highway near the town of Louis Trichardt, around 400 kilometres (248 miles) north of the capital, Pretoria.

Simon Zwane, a Road Traffic Management Corporation spokesperson, told South Africa's News24 news outlet that authorities had confirmed 42 fatalities but were still verifying the number of dead and injured.

The bus veered off the road along a steep mountain pass and plunged into an embankment, the provincial government said. Images released by authorities showed the blue bus lying upside down in the embankment.

The bus was travelling from South Africa's Eastern Cape in the south of the country, authorities said.

The Limpopo provincial government said in a statement that the bus was believed to be carrying Zimbabwean and Malawian nationals who were travelling to their home countries.

The provincial government did not immediately provide the number of people who were injured but said several survivors were transported to hospitals.