A dump truck crashes into a minibus in Indonesia, killing 11 kindergarten teachers

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia — A dump truck crashed into a minibus on a downhill road in Indonesia's Central Java province, killing 11 people, all of them kindergarten teachers, officials said Wednesday.

The truck, loaded with construction materials, collided with the minibus before crashing into a house in Kalijambe village, in Purwerjo district. The minibus was carrying a group of teachers from Magelang district who were attending a funeral in Purworejo district, the local disaster management agency said in a statement.

“The truck allegedly lost control and hit the minibus,” said Andry Agustiano, the Purworejo police chief. He added the police officers immediately opened an investigation.

Several ambulances transported the bodies and other injured victims, including the truck driver and the owner of the house, to a nearby hospital.

Road accidents are common in Indonesia because of poor safety standards and infrastructure.

On Tuesday, a bus carrying 34 passengers sped out of control on and overturned in Indonesia’s West Sumatra province, killing at least 12 people.

Last year, a bus carrying 61 students and teachers returning from an outing to a high school in Depok, just outside Jakarta, slammed into cars and motorbikes after its brakes failed, killing 11 students and injuring dozens of others.

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Associated Press journalist Edna Tarigan in Jakarta, Indonesia, contributed to this report.