Tibet bus crash death toll rises to 15 ( 2003-12-12 21:51) (Xinhua)
As one more seriously-injured person died in hospital Friday, the death toll
of the bus crash early Monday in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region has
increased to 15, local traffic police said Friday.
As of press time, most of the injured had been discharged from hospital,
while ten passengers were receiving treatment and a 14-year-old girl was still
in a critical condition, according to a hospital source.
The bus, carrying 64 people including two drivers, left this regional capital
around midnight Sunday, and was heading for Xigaze in southern Tibet when it
plunged into a 30-meter gully at about 4:00 a.m. Monday.
Ten people died at the scene, and four died in hospital later Monday. The bus
crash also injured 43 others, of whom six were in serious condition.
A source at the regional public security bureau said most of the passengers
aboard the ill-fated bus were farmers and herdsmen from Tibet and neighboring
Qinghai and Sichuan provinces.
One driver was injured seriously, and the other was slightly injured in the
crash, police said.
An initial investigation has shown that the bus was carrying 20 more
passengers than its loading capacity.
The regional transportation bureau has organized a team to investigate the
cause of the accident and deal with its aftermath.