At least 19 people were killed and 20 injured on Friday when the brakes on a passenger bus traveling on a highway in central Mexico apparently failed, allowing it to crash into a house, authorities revealed.

The bus had been heading to a religious shrine in the state of Mexico, according to local media reports. 

Assistant State Interior Secretary Ricardo de la Cruz Musalem said that the injured had been transferred to hospitals, including some by air, while the state Red Cross said 10 ambulances had rushed to the area.