United Arab Emirates (UAE) police said Monday that at least 22 people had been killed and more than 20 people were injured in a road collision that involved a bus and a truck that had been hauling gravel.
The truck driver lost control of his vehicle, causing it to land on top of the bus and trap its passengers under the cargo of gravel, police said of Sunday’s incident.
The Xinhua News Agency, citing local media, reported that the truck may have lacked proper brakes.
Twenty-four people were injured, at least five critically, officials from two hospitals in al-Ain said. The police did not disclose the nationalities of the dead, but Dubai-based Gulf News daily reported they were mostly from Bangladesh, India and Pakistan.
The per capita death toll on UAE roads is among the highest in the world, according to World Health Organisation data. The UAE is a federation made up of seven emirates that include trade and tourism hub Dubai and oil-rich Abu Dhabi.