Image copyright AFP Image caption The serious accident was a result of faulty brakes, according to the lorry driver

More than a dozen people have been killed after a lorry lost control at a toll station in north-west China.

Dozens more were injured when the vehicle collided with a line of waiting cars in Lanzhou, the provincial capital of Gansu, on Saturday.

The cause of the 31 vehicle pile-up is under investigation.

However, according to China's Xinhua news, the lorry driver told authorities his brakes failed as he travelled down a hill towards the toll station.

Xinhua puts the death toll at 15, with another 44 people injured.

Image copyright AFP Image caption An aerial view shows the scale of the pile-up

The crash comes less than a week after 13 people were killed when a bus plunged off a bridge and into a river in Chongqing , south-western China.</s>More than a dozen people have been killed after a lorry lost control at a toll station in north-west China.

Dozens more were injured when the vehicle collided with a line of waiting cars waiting in Lanzhou, the provincial capital of Gansu, on Saturday.

The cause of the 31 vehicle pile-up is under investigation.

However, according to China's Xinhua news, the lorry driver told authorities his brakes failed as he travelled down a hill towards the toll station.

Xinhua puts the death toll at 15, with another 44 people injured.

The crash comes less than a week after 13 people were killed when a bus plunged off a bridge and into a river in Chongqing , south-western China.</s>Officials said another 44 people were injured in the pile-up at the toll station which is close to Lanzhou, capital of Gansu.

The pile-up occurred on Saturday after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into a line of vehicles waiting at a toll station on the Lanzhou-Haikou Expressway. (Photo: AP)

Beijing: A highway pile-up involving at least 31 cars killed 15 people in northwest China's Gansu province, officials said, leaving dramatic scenes of twisted and burnt-out wreckage.

The pile-up occurred on Saturday after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into a line of vehicles waiting at a toll station on the Lanzhou-Haikou Expressway, state-run China Daily reported on Sunday.

Officials said another 44 people were injured in the pile-up at the toll station which is close to Lanzhou, capital of Gansu.

Investigation into the cause of the accident is underway, the report said.

Last week, 13 people were killed after a fist fight between a woman passenger and a driver caused a bus to plunge from a bridge into the mighty Yangtze River in southwest China.

Deadly road accidents are common in China, where traffic regulations are often flouted or go unenforced. Violations of traffic laws were blamed for nearly 90 per cent of accidents that caused deaths or injuries that year.</s>Authorities in China say 15 people have been killed and 44 injured in a highway pile-up.

The accident happened Saturday night after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into a line of vehicles waiting at a toll station in the northwestern province of Gansu.

31 vehicles were involved in the horror crash, and 10 of the 44 injured were in a serious condition as a result, China Daily reported.

The driver of the truck, who sustained minor injuries, told police the vehicle had a brake failure as he was travelling downhill.

He is being investigated and are under police watch as officers try to confirm the claim.

Police confirmed the man lost control of the truck in the 17km downhill stretch, and hit the long line of cars about 7.21pm, China.org reported.

In the meantime, Gansu provincial authorities have ordered dangerous sections of expressways to be inspected.

Images show twisted metal and debris littering the road, while the toll station, which leads to Lanzhou, has been closed.

The truck is reported to be the property of a logistics company in the Liaoning province.

Last week, 15 people were killed after a bus to plunged off a high bridge into China's Yangtze River in the western city of Chongqing.

In that previous crash, an eight-second surveillance video released by police showed the driver and a passenger arguing and grappling with each other in the moments before the bus suddenly veered across oncoming traffic and off the bridge.</s>At least 15 people have died after a truck lost control and ploughed into cars at a toll booth in northwest China.

The driver of the articulated truck lost control on a downhill stretch of motorway in the city of Lanzhou and crashed into the line of 31 vehicles.

As well as those killed, authorities said 44 people were hurt including 10 who suffered serious injuries.

The truck driver is being investigated by police.



Media reports say it was the first time the driver had driven on the stretch of road.

State broadcaster CCTV aired video from the scene showing heavy snow and many crippled and twisted vehicles.

Fatal road accidents are common in China where traffic regulations are often flouted or not enforced.

Last week a scuffle between a bus driver and a passenger caused a bus to plunge from a bridge into a river in southwest China, killing all 15 people on board.

Official statistics show that 58,000 people were killed in accidents across the country in 2015 alone.

Drivers flouting traffic laws were blamed for almost 90% of accidents that caused deaths or injuries that year.</s>BEIJING: An out-of-control truck ploughed into a 31-car lineup in northwest China killing 15 people and injuring 44, authorities in the city of Lanzhou said yesterday. The accident occurred Saturday night as the driver of the heavy duty articulated truck lost control on a downhill stretch of expressway and collided with cars lining up at a toll booth, Lanzhou’s propaganda department said.

Ten of the 44 hurt sustained serious injuries, authorities said. The big rig driver Li Feng was put under investigation and police watch, according to the official news agency Xinhua. The semi-trailer was registered to Li’s home northeastern Liaoning province, more than 2,000 kilometers from the scene of the accident. It was Li’s first time driving the stretch of road, the China Daily said.

State broadcaster CCTV aired video from the scene showing heavy snow and many crippled and twisted vehicles. Deadly road accidents are common in China, where traffic regulations are often flouted or go unenforced. Last week a scuffle between a bus driver and a passenger caused a bus to plunge from a bridge into a river in southwest China, killing all 15 people on board. According to authorities 58,000 people were killed in accidents across the country in 2015 alone. Violations of traffic laws were blamed for nearly 90 percent of accidents that caused deaths or injuries that year._ AFP</s>At least 15 people were killed and 44 were injured after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into dozens of vehicles waiting at a toll booth on a highway near Lanzhou, a city in northwestern China, the police reported on Sunday.

The accident took place on Saturday evening on the Lanzhou-Haikou expressway when a tower-crane truck lost control due to brake failure and crashed into waiting cars, according to the driver who suffered light injuries and is under police custody pending investigation.</s>LANZHOU (XINHUA) - The death toll in a 31-vehicle pile-up on an expressway in northwest China's Gansu Province on Saturday evening (Nov 3) has risen to 15, with 44 injured as of Sunday morning, local authorities said.

Ten of the 44 injured people were seriously injured, according to local government sources, after a tower-crane truck lost control and crashed into a line of vehicles 50 metres away from the Lanzhou South Toll Station on the Lanzhou-Haikou Expressway at 7.21pm in Lanzhou.

The truck driver, who was slightly injured in the crash, is under police watch and is being investigated. The driver said the vehicle had a brake failure in the continuous downhill section of the expressway. The cause of the accident is under investigation.

The Gansu provincial authorities demanded an examination of dangerous sections of expressways across the province.</s>BEIJING — Authorities in China say at least 15 people have been killed and 44 injured in a highway pile-up.

The accident Saturday night happened after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into a line of vehicles waiting at a toll station in the northwestern province of Gansu.

Last week, 15 people were killed after a bus to plunged off a high bridge into China’s Yangtze River in the western city of Chongqing.

In that previous crash, an eight-second surveillance video released by police showed the driver and a passenger arguing and grappling with each other in the moments before the bus suddenly veered across oncoming traffic and off the bridge.</s>Beijing, Nov 4 (IANS) At least 15 people were killed and 44 others injured after a heavy truck lost control and crashed into dozens of vehicles waiting at a toll booth on a highway near China’s Lanzhou city, the police said on Sunday.

The accident took place on Saturday evening on the Lanzhou-Haikou expressway when a tower-crane truck lost control due to brake failure and crashed into waiting cars, reports Efe news.

Ten of the injured were in critical condition and the toll could rise in the next few hours, the police said.
A lorry loses control at a toll station in Lanzhou, China, killing at least 15 people and injuring 44 others.