Six dead, 7 injured in central China bridge crash

BEIJING (AFP): Six people died after a car lost control and slammed into bikes and other vehicles on a bridge in central China’s Hunan province early Monday morning, police said.

Police said the car was rear-ended, sending it into incoming traffic travelling in the opposite direction.

Another seven people were injured, police said.

Footage on Chinese social media Monday showed a large white van rushing into oncoming traffic and barreling through vehicles on Lusong Bridge in the city of Zhuzhou.

The footage showed debris scattered across the road as at least four ambulances were at the scene, blocking traffic.

The cause of the accident is being investigated, according to state media Xinhua News Agency.

Deadly traffic accidents occur frequently in China, due to lax safety standards and widespread disorderly driving.

This month in a separate incident, a school bus ploughed into a crowd of people outside a middle school in eastern China, killing 11 parents and students.

State broadcaster CCTV said the driver “lost control” of the vehicle as it approached the school in Shandong province’s Tai’an city.

And in July, police said a vehicle crashed into pedestrians in the central city of Changsha, killing eight people and injuring five.

A 55-year-old suspect living in the area was detained pending an investigation, but it was not clear if the incident was intentional.