A passenger bus overturned in Afghanistan’s capital early Wednesday, killing at least 26 people, a Taliban official said.
It happened early in the morning in the Arghandi area of Kabul. The bus was coming from southern Afghanistan with passengers from Helmand and Kandahar.
Reckless driving caused the accident, which also injured 27 people, Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said.
The crash reportedly happened at 3am. The bus, a 580-model, is said to have steered off the road and down an embankment.
It was on its way from Kandahar to the capital when the crash happened.
Officials and witnesses were on hand to help pull bodies from the wreck and take the injured to the hospital for treatment.
Many of those who survived are said to be in critical condition.
Horrific photos from the scene show the extent of damage to the bus.
The accident comes less than a week after a crash that killed about 80 people in the western province of Herat.
In that incident, the bus was carrying Afghan migrants deported from Iran when it collided with a truck and a motorcycle.
That crash was also blamed on the driver’s ‘excessive speed and negligence’.
Traffic accidents in the country are common. Many roads have been damaged due to decades of fighting.
Additionally, driving rules and regulations are not properly enforced, often leading to chaos on the roads.
This is a breaking news story with more to follow.
