AFP: At least 26 people were killed and 13 others injured in southern Iran when a truck driven by a drug addict collided with a passenger bus, state television reported Thursday. TEHRAN, July 27, 2006 (AFP) – At least 26 people were killed and 13 others injured in southern Iran when a truck driven by a drug addict collided with a passenger bus, state television reported Thursday.
“Unfortunately a drug addict truck driver who was dozing hit a passenger bus on the road from Bandar Abbas to Shiraz,” traffic control police chief Mohammad Kharegh was quoted as saying.
Eighteen people died on the spot and another eight died on the road to the hospital, he said, adding that the injured people were also in a critical condition.
Iran’s roads are considered to be among the most dangerous in the world, with police anticipating the annual death toll will rise to 31,000 from around 28,000 according to the most recent statistics.
Decrepit vehicles — many of them more than 20 years old — as well as poor road conditions, general contempt for driving laws and widespread use of opiates are blamed for the high casualty rate.
