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German plane evacuates 15 injured in Madeira bus crash

FUNCHAL, Portugal (AP) - A German military plane on Saturday evacuated 15 German tourists who survived this week's bus crash on the island of Madeira that claimed 29 lives, Germany's Foreign Ministry said.

The injured were put on a German air force plane and flown out of the Cristiano Ronaldo international airport on Madeira. They arrived later Saturday in Cologne, where the city said they were being admitted to a hospital.

One German survivor remains in the hospital in Madeira's capital, Funchal, Portuguese health officials said. Another German injured in the crash was flown out on Friday.

The bus plummeted down a slope in Wednesday's crash, killing 29 people, all German citizens, in the coastal town of Canico.

The bus driver and a tourist guide, both Portuguese, also remain in the hospital. Eleven other people hurt in the crash had been discharged by Friday.

The cause of the crash is being investigated.

Madeira, an important European tourist destination, is a Portuguese island located 580 miles (935 kilometers) west of Morocco in the Atlantic Ocean.

A German air force (Luftwaffe) plane lands at Madeira international airport in Funchal, the capital of Portugal's Madeira Island, Saturday April 20, 2019. A German plane is due to take home some of the injured survivors in Wednesday's bus crash in Madeira. (AP Photo/Armando Franca) The Associated Press
A German air force (Luftwaffe) plane comes into land at Madeira international airport in Funchal, the capital of Portugal's Madeira Island, Saturday April 20, 2019. A German plane is due to take home some of the injured survivors in Wednesday's bus crash in Madeira. (AP Photo/Armando Franca) The Associated Press
An injured person is carried into a German air force (Luftwaffe) plane at Madeira international airport in Funchal, the capital of Portugal's Madeira Island, Saturday April 20, 2019. A German plane is due to take home some of the injured survivors in Wednesday's bus crash in Madeira. (AP Photo/Armando Franca) The Associated Press
Ambulances parked around a German air force (Luftwaffe) plane at Madeira international airport in Funchal, the capital of Portugal's Madeira Island, Saturday April 20, 2019. The plane was due to take home some of the injured survivors in Wednesday's bus crash in Madeira. (AP Photo/Armando Franca) The Associated Press
Ambulances depart after ferrying injured to a German air force (Luftwaffe) plane at Madeira international airport in Funchal, the capital of Portugal's Madeira Island, Saturday April 20, 2019. The plane was due to take home some of the injured survivors in Wednesday's bus crash in Madeira. (AP Photo/Armando Franca) The Associated Press
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