The death toll of a traffic accident that took place in Sichuan Province Monday afternoon has rose to 23, local police said.

The bus, carrying 29 passengers plunged from a cliff at around 1:00 pm in Wanyuan City.

The five seriously injured passengers are now out of danger thanks to timely medical treatment. Another passenger was hurt slightly.

The local authorities immediately rushed to the scene, more than 500 km away from Chengdu, capital of the province, to direct rescue work and deal with the aftermath.

The cause of the accident is being investigated.

(Xinhua News Agency May 24, 2004)