A fire on an overcrowded bus carrying flammable materials killed 41 passengers in central China on Friday, state television reported, in one of the country’s worst road accidents this year.
The double-decker bus was taking people to southern Hunan province when it caught fire early on Friday morning on a highway, China Central Television (CCTV) said, adding the cause of the disaster is still being investigated.
Five passengers and the driver were pulled alive from the overnight bus, which was reportedly only designed to carry 35 passengers but had 47 people on board. CCTV said there were “flammable materials” on board, but did not provide further details.