The Lianyungang-Horgos expressway. Photo: VCG

 
China's Ministry of Emergency Management on Sunday dispatched task force and expert team to instruct rescue following a deadly highway accident the previous day near Wusu in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. 

Around 10 pm on Saturday, a multi-vehicle rear-end collision occurred on the G30 Lianyungang-Horgos expressway, approximately 70 kilometers away from Wusu. The accident resulted in nine fatalities and seven injuries, according to CCTV News.

Upon receiving the report, the Ministry made relevant deployments, demanding the rescue operations be carried out scientifically to prevent secondary harms, and to treat the injured with all-out efforts to minimize casualties, per CCTV.

The Ministry also urged a thorough investigation to determine the cause of the accident, drawing lessons to firmly avoid similar incidents in the future and has dispatched a work team and relevant experts to the site to guide rescue and disposal efforts and assist in treating the injured.

The area where the accident occurred experienced sudden heavy fog, compounded by the local winter nighttime ground temperatures dropping below 0 C, which caused the road surface to become wet and icy within a short period, according to earlier media reports.

Global Times