LANZHOU: Seven people were confirmed dead and five others injured in a highway pile-up in northwest China’s Gansu province Thursday, authorities said Friday.

A van, a bus and a truck smashed into each other at 9 am Thursday on a highway in Tongwei county, a local traffic police officer said.

He said the seven dead were all from the van and the bus.

The van had pulled over, which caused the bus behind it to slow down, the officer said.

The truck behind the bus, however, hit the bus, which slammed into the van pushing it off the road.

The five injured were still in hospital Friday but their condition was stable, the officer said.

The cause of the accident is still under investigation.

Road accidents are more prone in China during the Spring Festival travel rush because of driving fatigue, speeding and overloading.

In one of the latest road accidents, a speeding bus plunged into a reservoir Sunday in central China’s Henan province, leaving 19 people dead and seven injured.