Last Update: January 08, 2023, 10:40 AM IST
Emergency workers in Hong Kong, where two people died and six were injured at a construction site. (AFP)
Most of the dead and injured were attending the funeral after they were hit by a truck, reports said.
Seventeen people were killed and 22 others were injured in a road accident in eastern China’s Jiangxi province on Sunday. Government media gave this information.
“17 people died in the accident, 22 were injured, (and) the injured have been sent to hospital,” state broadcaster CCTV said, citing local officials.
The “major road accident” occurred just before 1:00 a.m. (1700 GMT) in Nanchang County.
“The cause of the accident is being thoroughly investigated,” CCTV said.
Local news outlet Jimu, affiliated with the state-owned Hubei Daily Media Group, reported that the accident occurred when a truck rammed a funeral procession.
A local woman named Deng told the outlet that people were making roadside offerings before planning to go to the crematorium on Sunday morning.
Reports said they were hit by a truck carrying most of the dead and injured attending the funeral.
Another local man named Gong told the outlet that his wife had died in the accident and had attended the funeral.
He said the truck suddenly crashed into the rear of the line, breaking up the group before reaching Rathi.
About an hour after news of the accident broke out, Nanchang County traffic police issued travel tips to drivers, saying the area was experiencing “hazy weather”.
“Driving visibility is poor, there is low visibility, which can easily lead to traffic accidents,” it said.
It said, “Please pay attention to the fog lights… slow down, drive carefully, keep a safe distance from the car in front, avoid pedestrians, do not change lanes and overtake.”
Road accidents are common in China due to the lack of strict safety controls.
Last month, one person died during a highway pile-up in central China that involved hundreds of vehicles and was caused by low visibility in fog.
And in September, 27 passengers died when a bus carrying them to quarantine facilities in southwestern Guizhou province overturned on a motorway.
read all breaking news Here
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)