Some 12 people died and several others were seriously injured in a bus crash on the outskirts of Berlin, police have said.

The Polish tourist coach was returning to Poland from Spain on the A10 motorway on the outskirts of Berlin, when a car apparently cut off its way.

The bus driver tried avoiding the car, but lost control over his vehicle and crashed into a bridge support.

According to police 46 passengers were on the bus. Thirty of them were injured in the crash, 13 of them seriously.

The motorway was completely sealed off for the rescue work at the site with emergency services examining the bus wreckage and medical personnel treating injured passengers.