<p><br /> Some forty people have been killed in the Philippines after a packed bus plummeted around 100 ft down a steep ravine.<br /> </p><p><br /> Ten people, including a ten-year-old boy, survived and nine were taken to hospitals, said police chief Wilben Mayor of Benguet province North of Manila.<br /> </p><p><br /> Mayor said most of the victims were crushed to death while others were thrown out as the bus tumbled down. He said 39 bodies were recovered.<br /> </p><p><br /> The bus was carrying about 50 people from the northern mountain city of Baguio when it crashed in Sablan township.<br /> </p><p><br /> Conductor John Patrick Flores, speaking after the accident by telephone, said that the brakes on the bus failed as the driver was negotiating a downhill curve.<br /> </p><p><br /> He said the driver was aiming to hit a lamppost to stop the bus from falling but missed and it jumped over a low road barrier.<br /> </p><p><br /> Accidents in the area are common because of poorly maintained vehicles. Last month, 15 people died when their bus slammed into a concrete barrier in the central Philippines.<br /> </p>