Tanzania road crash leaves 11 dead, 15 injured

Eleven people died and 15 were injured when a truck carrying potatoes crashed into five vehicles in the southern Tanzanian town of Mbeya, the presidency said Saturday.

The truck was driving down a steep hill when the accident happened on Friday night.

"It is with great shock that I heard of the death of 11 people in Mbeya. Yet again we have lost fellow citizens in a road accident, while others are injured. I am deeply saddened," President John Magufuli was quoted as saying in the statement.

Road accidents in Tanzania are common, often due to speeding, overloading of vehicles, poor road and vehicle conditions, but also lax road safety enforcement by police.

In March, 24 people were killed when a bus collided with a truck, while the following month a similar accident left 12 dead and 46 injured. Last Sunday five people, including two tourists from Spain and two from Italy were killed in accident in the north of the country.