Xi expresses condolences over HK bus crash

BEIJING - Chinese President Xi Jinping has expressed condolences and sympathy to the victims and their families in a bus crash that killed 19 and injured more than 60 in Hong Kong on Saturday.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, sent his messages to Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, the Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), right after the accident.

Xi demanded all-out efforts by the HKSAR to cope with the aftermath of the disaster, rescue the injured and comfort their families.

He also expressed appreciation for HKSAR's emergency operations after the accident.

The crash happened at around 6:15 pm local time Saturday when the bus, which was on its way to Tai Po from Shatin racecourse, toppled to its left on Tai Po Road in the New Territories, destroying a roadside bus station.

Most of the passengers were horse racing fans, as the bus was traveling a special route that operated on racing days.

Police said the 30-year-old driver of the bus was arrested.

The accident was the deadliest in Hong Kong since 2003, when 21 people were killed after a double-decker bus plunged off a flyover following a collision with a container truck.