13 dead in Gansu bus accident; 3 detained

At least 13 people have died in a traffic accident in Gansu province, the Pingliang city government said on Monday evening.

A bus carrying 63 people overturned at around 2:10 pm on the Qingdao-Lanzhou Expressway in Jingchuan county. The passengers were all workers heading for the city of Golmud in Qinghai province to help with the wolfberry harvest, according to a news release from the government of Pingliang, the city that administers Jingchuan.

Thirteen people were killed, with their identities still being verified. Three people－two drivers and a labor contractor－have been placed in police detention. The remaining 47 passengers were sent to hospital for medical treatment, and their conditions were generally stable, the release said.

On-site rescue work, treatment for the injured and a probe into the cause of the accident are in full swing, the city government said.