A speeding bus plowed into the back of a tanker truck carrying a highly toxic chemical, killing 16 people, injuring 24 and spreading a wall of flames across a major central China highway.
The accident occurred at about 7pm on Monday evening along a stretch of the country's main north-south highway in the province of Hunan, the Xinhua news agency said.
The explosion that resulted then ignited three other vehicles that were already stopped because of an earlier accident, the report said.
It did not say what substance was in the tank.
An officer with the Hunan provincial highway administration said the truck was carrying toluene, a hazardous chemical that is used in the manufacture of paints, paint thinners, fingernail polish and other similar products.
The officer, who identified himself only by his surname, Luo, said the injured were being treated at hospitals, but he did not know their conditions. He gave a slightly different account of the accident, saying two buses first collided and a second truck also carrying hazardous materials was involved.
Authorities brought traffic to a complete halt along the Beijing-Zhuhai highway, which only recently reopened after being closed by freak storms that encrusted it with ice.
The accident underscored the widespread disregard for safety measures when transporting dangerous materials in China, along with deep-set problems with overloading, poorly maintained vehicles and hazards brought about by reckless or overworked drivers.
A week ago, a tanker truck carrying 30 tonnes of sulfuric acid overturned on a highway in southwestern China, spilling the corrosive chemical into a drainage ditch that feeds into a river.
The long-term environmental impact of the accident in Yunnan Province was unclear. Xinhua said the spill resulted in "serious pollution" and killed large numbers of fish.
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