A major vehicle accident in the central province of Binh Thuan early this morning killed 13 people and left another 21 suffering from severe burns.

The accident reportedly occurred at 4am on the section of National 1A Highway that crosses Thuan Nam Town in Ham Thuan Nam Commune. Officials said two passenger coaches were struck by a truck and engulfed in flames.

One of the coaches was a Phuong Trang sleeper bus – a well-known transport company in the southern part of Vietnam. The sleeper bus was traveling on its route from Quang Ngai Province to HCM City, while the other coach in the accident ran on the way around, from HCM City to Quang Ngai Province.

The two coaches were completely destroyed by the fire, while the driver’s compartment of the truck was also destroyed.

Authorities confirmed by 9am this morning that 13 people were killed in the accident but, due to their burns, have not yet been identified.

Another 21 who were injured were being treated at Ham Thuan Nam Hospital and Binh Thuan General Hospital.

The crash caused a traffic jam on the highway for about three hours, though traffic returned to normal by about 7am.

Stricter traffic law enforcement ordered after horror Binh Thuan crash

Deputy Prime Minister Trương Hòa Bình ordered the police force to intensify patrols and traffic law compliance on highways following a major vehicle accident in the central province of Bình Thuận yesterday that killed 13 people.

It also left 35 others suffering from severe burns.

Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc and Deputy Prime Minister Trương Hòa Bình sent their condolences to the families of the crash victims.

Deputy PM Bình, who is Chairman of the National Traffic Safety Committee, requested Bình Thuận’s police to quickly establish the cause of the accident so that the culprits could be stringently punished.

He sent officials from the committee and the Ministry of Transport to the scene to work together with Bình Thuận’s relevant agencies in addressing the accident’s consequences.

Healthcare services and medicines should promptly be given to the injured, he said, also asking that all possible assistance be given to the families of the victims so that they could recover the remains of their relatives and organise funerals.

The accident reportedly occurred at 4am on the section of National Highway 1A that crosses Thuận Nam Town in Hàm Thuận Nam Commune. Officials said two passenger coaches were struck by a truck and were engulfed in flames.

One of the coaches was a Phương Trang sleeper bus – a well-known transport company in southern Việt Nam. The sleeper bus was on route from Quảng Ngãi Province to HCM City, while the other coach involved in the accident was traveling from HCM City to Quảng Ngãi Province.

The two coaches were completely destroyed by the ensuing fires, while the driver’s compartment of the truck was also destroyed.

Authorities confirmed by 9am this morning that 13 people had been killed in the accident. Due to the severity of the burns inflicted, not all victims have been identified yet.

Another 36 who were injured are being treated at Hàm Thuận Nam Hospital and Bình Thuận General Hospital.

The crash caused a three-hour traffic jam on the highway, though traffic returned to normal by about 7am. 

VNS