BEIJING — A traffic accident in southern China killed 17 people and injured 22 others early Sunday as the annual Lunar New Year holiday travel rush got underway, authorities said.
The accident occurred outside the city of Nanchang in Jiangxi province, according to the local traffic management brigade. It wasn’t clear how many vehicles or what types were involved and the cause was under investigation, the brigade said.
Website Jimu News quoted a resident as saying the victims were mourners from the village of Taoling who had set up a funeral tent on the side of the road, as is common in rural China, and were hit by a passing truck as they were preparing to travel to the local crematorium in the morning.