CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga -- (UPDATE) At least six people died while 56 others were hurt on Saturday in a head-on collision between a passenger bus and a van on the North Luzon Expressway in Mabalacat, Pampanga, police said.

The accident happened at the Dau interchange in Mabalacat at 12:20 p.m.

Police said the driver of the Fermina Express Bus, Bernardo Santos of Mangaldan, Pangasinan, survived the accident but was in critical condition. The driver of the Metro Manila-bound Toyota Revo, Ruth Diane Ferrer, 22, of Quezon City, and her passenger, Fr. Domingo Moraleda, were among the fatalities.

The four other victims were passengers of the Pangasinan-bound bus.

At least 30 injured passengers were taken to the Mabalacat Emergency Hospital while 25 others were taken to the St. Raphael Hospital, both in Mabalacat town. At least one victim was taken to the Angeles University Medical Center in Angeles City.

The bus was carrying more than 50 passengers.

The accident happened as people were returning to the provinces to remember their dead relatives during All Saints' Day.

Superintendent Baltazar Mamaril Jr., public information officer of the Central Luzon police, said that except for the collision, the situation in the region was normal as of 3 p.m. Saturday.

The police fielded 3,909 policemen in the region's seven provinces to ensure public safety.

The rains did not stop people from visiting their dead relatives in cemeteries.

Portions of cemeteries in the City of San Fernando, Sto. Tomas, Minalin, Candaba, San Luis, Apalit, Macabebe, and Masantol in Pampanga were flooded, reports said.

Venders in San Fernando complained that the sale of flowers was not brisk. Plain candles sold faster than decorated pieces.

Some politicians used the occasion to prop up their images through streamers printed with greetings or streamers in cemeteries and public areas.

In Baguio City, traffic was smoother than expected because of fewer people who went to the summer capital for All Saints' Day, said Benedicto Alhambra, city tourism officer.

He said the city estimated a 10 percent increase to the 100,000 visitors who come between October and December.

"We expect visitors from Pangasinan and La Union on Sunday because there are usually families seeking a respite from their All Saints' Day duties by then," Alhambra said.

No road accident was reported elsewhere in Northern Luzon on Saturday but traffic was heavy in areas near public cemeteries and memorial parks in the Ilocos and Cagayan Valley.