India, Nov. 17 -- In a night of unimaginable tragedy, eighteen members of a single Hyderabad family, including nine children, were among the 42 Indian pilgrims killed when their bus crashed and burst into flames near Medina in Saudi Arabia, media reports said.

The Hyderabad-based group had completed Umrah and was returning to Medina when disaster struck around 1:30 am.

According to reports, the bus collided with a diesel tanker roughly 30 km from the city. Most passengers were asleep, leaving them little chance to escape as the vehicle caught fire.

"Eighteen members of one family- nine adults and nine children- have died. It is a terrible tragedy for us," he said.

Among the victims were senior family member Naseeruddin (70), his wife ...