WUZHONG, Ningxia -  Five people died and another two were seriously injured in a traffic accident on Friday morning on an expressway in Wuzhong city, northwest Ningxia Hui autonomous region, said an official with local public security department.

At 6 am a truck crashed into a minibus, which was stopped on the roadside because of a traffic problem ahead. Three passengers on the minibus were killed instantly and another two died at the hospital. Four passengers were out of the bus and were unharmed, he added.

Another two, the driver and another minibus passenger, were seriously injured and remained hospitalized.

Ten residents of Xiaoqiao village, Qinghai province, were on their way to Ningxia in the minibus.

An investigation is under way.