Patna, Aug. 15 : Nine people including four pilgrims and a woman were killed and 16 others injured when a bus plunged into a canal in Bihar''s Lakhisarai district on Friday.

The accident took place when the sari of a woman sitting on the engine cover caught fire.

The driver, who tried to extinguish the blaze as the vehicle was still moving, lost control and the bus plummeted into the canal.

The incident occurred near Jhulauna village when the bus was returning from Sikandra to Lakhisarai, Superintendent of Police S P Shukla said.

While eight passengers died on the spot, one succumbed to injuries on way to hospital.

The four pilgrims were on way to Deoghar in adjoining Jharkhand, they said.

The injured have been admitted to a local government hospital where condition of four was stated to be critical, Shukla said. (ANI)