Road accident in India kills 28, including 13 children

PanARMENIAN.Net - A cargo truck crashed into two minivans packed with laborers headed to work early Thursday, Oct 3, in northeast India, killing 28 people, including 13 children, police said, according to the Associated Press.

Another 20 people were injured, some critically, when the 10-wheeler truck slammed into the oncoming minivans on a highway about 160 kilometers (100 miles) west of Gauhati, the capital of Assam state, according to the Barpata district police station.

The minivans, which had been carrying workers to a local brick kiln, were smashed into mangled metal masses and pushed into a roadside ditch. Among the dead were five women. Some had been taking their children to work to be looked after during the day.

The truck was on its way to the neighboring state of West Bengal. Police said they have yet to account for the truck driver, though one of two people who were in the truck is believed to be among the dead.

Area villagers arrived first at the scene. Local TV broadcasts showed a huge crowd surrounding 28 bodies covered in white sheets and lined up on green grass.

In early Sept, 13 people were killed when a bus fell into a gorge after hitting a roadside tree in southern India. The accident occurred in the hilly Malappuram area of Kerala state. Another 25 people were injured in the accident, which happened after the driver lost control of the bus.