Traffic Accident Kills 20 People in South Korea

A bus carrying sightseers hit a utility pole and plunged off a highway in South Korea on Tuesday, killing 20 people.

Another 22 passengers were injured, many of them seriously, when the bus veered off a road and fell 43 feet into a dry stream bed near Jinju, 250 miles south of Seoul.

Officials said 18 people died immediately and two others died overnight. The dead included the bus driver, 52-year-old Chang Doo-sung.

All the passengers were sightseers from several towns on the south coast who were returning from a tour to scenic Jiri Mountain.

Police blamed speeding for the accident, citing statements by survivors.

Investigators said they were testing the driver's blood to determine if he had been drinking.

Most of the passengers were traveling without fastened seat belts, police said.










People's Daily Online --- http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/