a passenger coach overturned in Lào Cai Province, leaving nine dead on Saturday morning. — VNA/VNS Photo

LÀO CAI — Nine people were killed in a serious traffic accident that occurred on Saturday morning in Phình Hồ Commune, Lào Cai Province after a 29-seat passenger bus overturned on a section of downhill slope, according to local authorities

The accident happened at around 7:40 a.m. at Km35 on National Highway 174, which connects with National Highway 32, in Phình Hồ Commune.

The bus carrying people on a charity trip was traveling from Hạnh Phúc Hamlet toward Tằng Ghênh Hamlet when it overturned at the foot of a slope, leaving the vehicle severely damaged.

Hoàng Anh Tuấn, Chairman of the Phình Hồ Commune People’s Committee, said there were 19 people on board the bus. Rescue forces had managed to pull some 10 people out of the vehicle. Additional forces, equipment and machinery were mobilised to free the remaining victims.

According to Tuấn, the section of road where the accident occurred features a long downhill slope. The coach may have lost its brakes before overturning.

Authorities are verifying and clarifying the cause of the accident.

By late morning, police, military personnel, local authorities and residents were still working at the scene, focusing on rescue efforts and using machinery to extract the remaining victims. — VNS