Berlin (CNN) Eighteen people have died and two others remain in "grave danger" following a bus crash in Germany, according to the Bavarian Interior Ministry.

Thirty other people suffered injuries in the Monday morning crash, a statement from the local authority said.

Earlier, German Transport Minister Alexander Dobrindt told reporters that emergency services had recovered 11 bodies from the crash in Bavaria. After the collision, the bus caught on fire and the flames were "so strong that only steel parts" were still recognizable, Dobrindt added.

Fire fighters and emergency services can be seen at the motorway A9 near Münchberg, Germany.

The collision occurred at 7 a.m. local time (1 a.m. ET) on the A9 road in the eastern part of the country, near Nuremberg.

Steffen Seibert, a spokesman for the German government, said Chancellor Angela Merkel had expressed her great dismay at the incident.

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