ACT Government media adviser Kurt Steel, 25, was among 10 people who were killed when the tourist bus overturned as it made its way from the town of Uyuni in the country's south west to La Paz on Saturday.

Friends, teachers and civic leaders from both sides of politics have remembered Mr Steel as a larger-than-life great mate and special man, who was one of the Labor party's rising stars.

A second Canberran, Gemma Barnes, was among another 24 foreign passengers who were injured in the incident.

The two friends were asleep on the top deck of the bus when it rolled and crashed after a sightseeing trip to the scenic Salar de Uyuni salt flats.

They had to be freed from the wreckage and were among the last to be transported from the crash site.

Ms Barnes, 27, suffered broken bones and fractures and underwent surgery in hospital.

She was expected to be released from hospital after a second operation in the next couple of days.

Her mother flew to Bolivia to be by her side and to deliver the news that Mr Steel did not survive the crash.

Ms Barnes, who most recently worked as a project officer in a government department, grew up in Bungendore and met Mr Steel at Canberra College.

The pair met up with fellow college graduate friend and Mr Steel's housemate Bryce Logan several weeks ago and toured Colombia and Peru together. The friends trekked to Machu Picchu with another college friend, Garry King, before they arrived in La Paz.

Mr Logan last spoke to Ms Barnes and Mr Steel on August 27, when he was in Chile on his way home and they were about to head to Uyuni.

He said Mr Steel planned to visit Brazil, Argentina and Chile before he returned home.

Mr Logan said Mr Steel's family and wide circle of friends were still in shock.

"We're all still going through the process of grieving and keeping each other moving forward and busy."

The pair had known each other since they were in Year 2 at Torrens Primary School and went on to live together in Sydney and Canberra for more than six years.

They did everything together and had similar interests in politics, music and movies, Mr Logan said.

"He was my best friend, he was my brother, he was my better half.

"But I think there were a lot of people who felt like that; everyone had their own special relationship with Kurt."

Mr Logan had watched tributes flow from politicians, friends, and even people Mr Steel had met briefly on his holiday who had "recognised the special person he was".

"I don't think we even realised the influence and the reach Kurt really had.

"If this is the impact he had on this many people in 25 years, we'd know we'd lived a good life if we touched a quarter of the people he did."

"He was a very special guy."

Mr Steel went to Melrose High School before Canberra College, followed by the University of Canberra, where he was heavily involved with the University of Canberra Student Association.

He worked with former Monaro Labor MP Steve Whan and was most recently media adviser to ACT Treasurer and deputy Chief Minister Andrew Barr.

Mr Logan said he was "a Labor guy through and through" and the friends were both "staunch lefties" who often discussed politics.

"Politics is definitely one of the loves of his life. He had a very bright future."

Mr Steel was the kind of friend who could always be counted on, whether it was to back a mate or give them a lift, Mr Logan said.

"Life was just that much easier having that kind of guy around."

"I don't think I could have asked for a better mate to spend the past 18, and especially the last 10, years with."

Canberra College deputy principal Helen Uren-Randall taught Mr Steel and said he had a strong sense of social justice, an inquisitive mind, and a desire to achieve the best outcome for the most people.

He was among a cohort of politically engaged students at the school who bonded across years and age groups over a shared passion for youth matters and politics.

"He was well-liked and just really, really kind, and extremely funny but always wore it himself rather than directing it at others."

Melrose High School teacher Des Proctor said Mr Steel had been an outgoing pupil who was heavily involved with the student representative council (SRC).

"He was a really positive part of the school community."

Mr Proctor said staff had been "really sorry" to hear of his death and would pay tribute to him at a school assembly this week.

Labor has "lost one of its brightest stars"

Tributes continued to flow for Mr Steel from both sides of politics on Monday.

Federal MP for Fraser, Andrew Leigh, was emotional as he remembered Mr Steel during a condolence motion in Parliament, and said his death had shaken the Labor family.

"Within the ACT, Kurt seemed to be at every committee meeting, trivia night and party event.

"My enduring memory of him is a man with a smile, looking for the next problem to solve."

He said Mr Steel was "Canberra through and through" and a proud Raiders supporter.

"The face of the right faction at ACT Labor conferences, I know Kurt would have gotten a chuckle out of the fact that tributes have come from not only ACT Opposition leader Jeremy Hanson, but even the left faction of the ACT Labor Party."

Mr Leigh said his thoughts were with Mr Steel's parents Jayne and Philip and siblings Chris and Yasmine.

In an email sent to all ACT Labor members, branch secretary Elias Hallaj said the party had lost one of its brightest stars.

NSW Labor politician Steve Whan said Mr Steel's death had come as "a big shock".

He worked for the former Monaro MP in Sydney for more than two years when Mr Whan was Emergency Services Minister.

"He was very young but very bright and always smiling, always a great person to have around."

Mr Whan said the world needed people like Mr Steel, because he was interested and engaged in the political process as a way of bringing about positive change in his community.

The ALP's assistant national secretary Nathan Lambert said in a statement Mr Steel was "immensely popular across the party – not just in Canberra but across the nation".

"Everyone who worked with him admired his passion, his belief, and above all his genial nature and steady mind.

"He always had a twinkle in his eye; he was never rattled in a crisis; he was always happy to chip in and help.

"He brought a positive energy – he would have laughed at that phrase but it's true – to everything he did."

Mr Lambert said he had been so impressed by Mr Steel's work on the 2013 federal election campaign he wanted to "poach him back" from Mr Barr's office.

"In a line of work where people are not necessarily quick to praise or trust others, Kurt was so widely admired and relied upon.

"He will be truly, sorely missed."