DUSHANBE, October 14, 2013, Asia-Plus — Thirteen people, most of them foreign nationals, have been killed in a late night collision between a minibus and a truck in the southern Russian region of Samara, Radio Liberty reported on October 13.
Its 36-year-old driver reportedly said the accident was caused by a burst tire on the minibus, which was carrying 11 Uzbek nationals, two Tajiks, and an Azerbaijani in addition to the driver.
But a police spokesman said the minibus driver fell asleep at the wheel, drifting into incoming traffic, and that the driver has been arrested.
The driver and one of the passengers were the only people in the minibus to have survived the fiery wreck.
An Emergency Situations Ministry report suggested the driver of the truck was also hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries.
