One dead, 44 missing in Benin after bus plunges into river —govt

COTONOU, Benin — One person died and forty-four are missing after a bus plunged into the Oueme River in central Benin overnight, the interior ministry said Sunday.

The driver of the bus, travelling from Lome to Niamey, lost control after hitting the railing of the bridge over the river "before ending up at the bottom of the water", Interior Minister Alassane Seidou said in a statement.

Nine survivors were evacuated in a "stable condition" to the hospital in Save, the nearest major city. — Agence France-Presse