Three people were killed and another 14 were injured in a collision involving 23 vehicles Sunday afternoon on the Shenzhen-Shantou freeway in south China's Guangdong Province.
Witnesses said the accident was caused by a passenger bus heading for Shantou City of Guangdong Province from Guangzhou, the provincial capital, which rear-ended a cargo van, starting a chain reaction that resulted in the massive pile-up.
The 23 automobiles included 18 heading to Shantou from Shenzhen, a boomtown facing Hong Kong across a river, and five heading to Shenzhen from Shantou. One bus and two cars were completely incinerated, and many other cars were damaged severely.
The three killed were all in one car, including the driver. The accident caused a traffic jam for more than one hour, said local sources.
All the injured are receiving medical treatment at hospitals in Shantou City.
The cause of the accident is under investigation.
(Xinhua News Agency July 14, 2003)
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