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Road accident kills 5 in Peru
(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-08-12 12:03

LIMA -- An interprovincial bus collided with a gas cylinder truck on the Pan-American highway in Peru Monday, killing at least five and injuring 12, authorities said.

The accident, allegedly caused by reckless driving or speeding, occurred in the town of Guadalapito in Viru province, about 500 km north of Peru's capital Lima.

Both drivers and another three passengers were killed on the spot. The injured have been taken to local hospitals.

Road accidents killed 800 Peruvians in 2007. Some 70 had died and another 100 wounded in road accidents by the end of July this year.

Specialists say traffic accidents in Peru are largely attributable to the disrepair of roads and some illegal drivers, who bought driving licence in the black market for around 30 to 50 U.S. dollars.