PARIS, Nov 6 - At least ​two people were killed and 16 injured in ‌a bus crash on Friday morning in eastern France near the Swiss border, local authorities said.

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu wrote in a post on ​X that two children had died in the ​accident.

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The local prefecture said in a statement that ⁠three of the injured were in critical condition.

Yves Cristin, ​the mayor of the small town of Lent where the ​crash took place, said a school bus had been involved, although

the local prefecture said the accident involved an intercity bus.

Cristin said 70 ​people were affected by the crash, though the local prefecture ​said the number affected was about 40. The town has opened its community ‌hall ⁠to provide care and shelter to the crash victims.

"I arrived minutes after the accident and people were in shock," Cristin told BFM TV. "The side of the bus was torn ​off, and ​clearly, the ⁠people who were on that side must have been seriously injured."

BFM TV showed a picture ​of a blue and white bus tilted ​in ⁠what appeared to be a ditch on the side of the road, while a crowd of people stood outside of ⁠it.

Transport ​Minister Philippe Tabarot said he was ​on his way to the scene.

Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout and Makini ​Brice; Editing by Inti Landauro, Richard Lough and Sharon Singleton