FRESNO, Calif. — A Greyhound bus carrying 47 people and traveling to Sacramento from Los Angeles crashed on a highway in California's Central Valley today, killing six and injuring many others.

California Highway Patrol Officer Michelle Sigmond said the bus driver swerved to try to avoid another crash involving an overturned SUV and slammed into a concrete center divider and then struck another vehicle shortly after 2 a.m., Pacific time, just outside downtown Fresno. The bus went down an embankment, hit a eucalyptus tree and came to rest on a freeway off-ramp with its front end smashed and tree branches jutting into the vehicle.

Twisted pieces of metal, broken glass and torn clothing littered the ground around the accident scene.

In addition to the six dead — four women and two men, including the driver — several people were hurt with injuries that ranged from critical to bruises and cuts, said Officer Kirk Arnold.

It's unclear if all of the fatalities were on the bus.

The bus departed Los Angeles late Wednesday and stopped in Fresno before continuing on its route to Sacramento. It was on its way to Madera for one of about eight scheduled stops when the crash occurred, according to Greyhound spokeswoman Bonnie Bastian.