At least eight people died and 20 others were injured early Monday when two buses collided head-on in the outskirts of Confresa in the midwestern state of Mato Grosso.

The accident occurred in an unpaved section of the BR-158 federal road, 28 kilometers from Confresa. A bus with 25 passengers, going from Vila Rica in Mato Grosso to Goiania in the neighboring state of Goias, collided head-on with another bus, carrying an Adventist Church group from Luciara in Mato Grosso to Confresa.

Emergency rescue vehicles took a long time to reach the accident site, as the neighboring towns have no Fire Department or ambulance services. The victims with more serious injuries were taken by helicopter to hospitals.

Brazil's Federal Highway Police (PRF) officers said that as most passengers were sleeping at the moment of the accident, they will not be able to shed any light on the cause of the collision.

According to the PRF officers, the road section in which the accident took place is unpaved. The dust in the air might have affected the bus drivers' ability to see the road clearly, contributing to the accident.