Seven killed in tour bus crash near Yellowstone National Park

Seven people have died in a collision between a tour bus and a truck near Yellowstone National Park.

Eight others were injured when a Chevy pickup truck and a van carrying 14 tourists crashed on a highway in eastern Idaho on Thursday. Police said an air ambulance flew some victims to hospital "due to the severity of the injuries".

Both vehicles caught fire. "Tragically, six individuals in the van and the driver of the pickup died as a result of the crash," Idaho State Police said. The identities or nationalities of the victims have not been revealed.

Police are still investigating the cause. The route where the crash took place leads into the park, which is now entering peak tourist season.

A photo from a passerby shows flames and billowing smoke near the crumpled front of the truck.

The witness who took the photo, local resident Roger Merrill, told the BBC's US partner CBS News he was on his way home when he saw the wreck.

Both vehicles were on fire, he said, and bystanders were trying to care for the survivors on the side of the highway.

"It is a very dangerous highway because it leads to the main entrance of Yellowstone National Park," he said. "It's extremely busy."

The road was closed for seven hours while emergency teams treated victims and cleared the crash site, about 16 miles (25km) from Yellowstone's entrance.

Police said the local coroner's office will release the names of the dead after family members have been notified.

Yellowstone, the US's oldest national park, covers nearly 3,500 sq miles in three states: Idaho, Wyoming and Montana.

It draws an average of four million tourists every year, with the majority of visitors coming between May and September, according to the National Park Service.