Unnao (UP) | A private sleeper bus collided with a car in fell off the Agra-Lucknow Expressway in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao on Wednesday, killing five people and injuring eight others, police said.

Two children are among those killed.

The accident occurred around 4.30 am near Devkhari village under the Bangarmau police station area at kilometre marker 230 of the expressway.

According to police, the sleeper bus, which was travelling from Haryana to Bihar, collided with an Ertiga car coming from the opposite direction.

Following the impact, the bus went out of control, broke through the expressway railing and fell onto the road below, while the car was extensively damaged.

The car occupants, identified as Dhunmun (60), Anju (40), Divya (6), Amrita (13) and driver Vinod (45), died on the spot, police said.

Four other occupants of the car and four passengers travelling in the bus sustained injuries and were admitted to hospital, where they are undergoing treatment.

Bangarmau Circle Officer Harsh Modi said preliminary investigation suggested that the bus driver may have dozed off, leading to the accident.

He said the exact cause of the mishap was being investigated.

Police and administrative officials rushed to the spot after receiving information about the accident and launched a rescue operation.

The injured were shifted to hospital, while the bodies were sent for post-mortem examination.

District Magistrate Ghanshyam Meena and Superintendent of Police Jai Prakash Singh visited the accident site and directed officials to ensure necessary action