Jakarta - A bus carrying 36 people plunged into a ravine in the Indonesian province of West Java early Monday, killing at least six people and injuring dozens of others, police said.

The accident took place at about 3 am (2000 GMT Sunday) when a passenger bus, moving at high speed, fell into a 200-metre ravine in Malangbong village in Garur district, about 150 kilometres south-east of Jakarta, the state-run Antara news agency reported.

Local police officers were quoted as saying they believed the bus driver lost control of his vehicle at a sharp bend of the road, causing the bus to fall into the ravine. It was suspected the accident happened because the driver was sleepy.

Six people were killed in the accident and 30 others, including one-year-old baby boy, were injured, many of them in serious condition. Rescue workers faced difficulties in evacuating the victims as many of them were squeezed inside the bus, which was upside down in a steep terrain.

Investigation are underway to determine the exact cause of the accident. (dpa)