BUCHAREST: Ten people were killed and seven injured on Saturday when a lorry collided with a minibus in eastern Romania, the country with the highest level of road deaths in the EU, police said.
Nine of the 16 people on the minibus and the driver of the truck died in the accident, one of the most serious in the country where the poor state of the roads is a concern for motorists.
Of the seven injured, four are in serious condition, secretary of state for the interior Raed Arafat said.
Some 40 firefighters were at the scene of the accident, which forced the closure of the road linking the towns of Slobozia and Urziceni, according to the department for emergency services.
Romania holds the record in the European Union for the highest level of deaths from road accidents, with 96 fatalities per one million inhabitants in 2018 compared to an average of 49 among all 28 EU nations.