Eight people were killed and seven injured in a 14-vehicle pile-up on Thursday on a highway in southwest China's Yunnan Province, according to local traffic police.

The accident occurred at about 9:00 a.m. on the highway linking Yuxi city and the Honghe ethnic autonomous prefecture, after the brakes of an overloaded truck failed.

The truck rear-ended other vehicles, leading to the chain collision.

The eight people killed all died on the scene. All the injured were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.

The local government has started an investigation.

(Xinhua News Agency April 11, 2008)