Scene of the accident. — VNA/VNS Photo

LÂM ĐỒNG — Three people were killed and another injured after a truck carrying telecommunications equipment lost control on a mountainside and crashed into a quarry office on Wednesday, authorities said, highlighting the dangers of steep transport routes in the Central Highlands.

The crash happened at about 8.30am on Tà Zôn Mountain in the southern province of Lâm Đồng. The truck, driven by a 27-year-old man from Nghệ An Province, had been heading uphill with equipment when it stopped at a transfer point about halfway up the mountain.

Workers had begun unloading part of the cargo so it could be hauled further up using a winch system, a routine step on the steep route.

Moments later, as the driver edged the vehicle forward to make space, the truck suddenly rolled downhill, picking up speed before slamming into the office area of a nearby granite quarry about 200 metres below.

The truck's front was badly damaged after the crash. — VNA/VNS Photo

Witnesses said the impact sounded like an explosion. Office staff fled in panic as the truck smashed through a wall. The front of the vehicle was crushed, with the axle buckling and the front wheels torn away.

Three people on board were killed, two at the scene and one later on the way to hospital. They were identified as Nguyễn Kim Trung Thịnh, 37; Lê Văn Mười, 49; and Nguyễn Thanh Nhã, 25.

The driver, Nguyễn Tấn Trường, was injured and is being treated at the General Hospital of Bình Thuận.

Local officials described the incident as a workplace accident that occurred during the transport of materials for a telecommunications project. Police are investigating what caused the truck to lose control.

A view of the Tà Zôn Mountain. — VNA/VNS Photo

Tà Zôn Mountain, which rises to 386m, is surrounded by active granite quarries. Because of the terrain, materials are typically transported partway up before being transferred to cable winches for the final stretch to the summit, where a telecommunications transmission tower is located. — VNS