The accident happened late Sunday when an excursion bus heading back from a trip to Karapete, an archeological site near the Turkish city of Osmaniye, plunged into an irrigation channel carrying students, teachers, and parents, The Daily Sabah reported.
Security camera video of the accident showed the bus driving into oncoming traffic at an intersection, being slammed by a car and rolling into the canal.
By-passers and residents jumped into the canal to try and rescue people trapped inside the bus, Hurriyet newspaper reported. Most of the bodies were recovered by divers.
Rescue teams have been searching the canal for missing passengers.
An investigation into the cause of the crash is underway.