ALGIERS, July 31 (Xinhua) -- At least 25 people were killed and 44 others injured on Friday when a passenger bus crashed in Algeria's northern province of Boumerdes, about 55 km east of the capital Algiers, the Civil Protection Department said.

The accident occurred at 9:41 a.m. local time (0841 GMT) on National Road No. 24 near the village of El Karma, when the bus, traveling from the eastern province of Setif, veered off the road, overturned, and plunged into a ravine, the department said.

The department said it deployed three intervention trucks and 11 ambulances to the scene.

Rescue teams continue evacuation and medical assistance operations, transferring the injured to nearby hospitals.