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At least 13 people have been killed after a heated quarrel between a bus driver and passenger resulted in a horror crash in China, police say.

Newly-released surveillance footage shows a female passenger lashing out at the driver and hitting him in the face moments before the tragedy.

She apparently smacks him with her phone, before he retaliates.

Seconds after the dispute, the bus veered onto the wrong side of the road and crashed into an oncoming car.

It then smashed through roadside barriers and flew off a bridge in Chongqing's Wanzhou District last Sunday.

The bus then plunged into the Yangtze River.

A previous investigation found that 15 people including the driver were on board the bus at the time.

By Thursday, a total of 13 bodies were retrieved and identified, while two others remain missing.

The driver of the car which was hit by the bus was said to have sustained some injuries.

And the argument is being blamed for the crash, local police said at a news briefing today.

(Image: Feature China / Barcroft Images)

According to police investigations, the 48-year-old female passenger had missed her stop, and asked the driver to stop on the road.

After the driver refused to halt the bus, she became enraged and struck him with her phone before the driver lost control of the vehicle.

Police believe that both the driver and passenger are responsible for the deadly incident since their physical altercation posed a serious threat to public security.

Their dispute allegedly violated China’s criminal law, and both are being held accountable for causing the tragedy.