Truck Smashes Bus in Two, Killing 18 in Moscow Region

An horrific accident that left 18 people dead and at least 40 injured outside Moscow was caused when a gravel truck smashed a bus full of passengers into two pieces, officials said.

The emergencies ministry had raised the death toll to 18 after several badly injured victims died in hospital.

Police said the accident was thought to have occurred when a truck carrying a cargo of gravel turned onto a main road and ploughed into the bus.

The head of the capital's health department, Georgy Golukhov, told the RIA Novosti news agency that injuries had been especially severe as the bus passengers were also hit with the gravel the truck was carrying.

Moscow deputy mayor Pyotr Birukov said that the driver, a 46-year-old Armenian, had been fined for traffic violations six times over the last year.

The driver, who survived the crash, has been hospitalised and is being interrogated by police, Birukov added.

Of the injured, around 20 are still hospitalized with 16 in a serious condition, Russian news agencies said.

The bus was travelling on a regular public transport route from Podolsk to Zhokhovo in the Moscow region and was packed with some 60 passengers.

The bus was split in two pieces by the force of the collision, RIA Novosti reported.

A huge traffic jam ensued as emergency services blocked off the road with police handing out water to stranded drivers on a hot summer's day.

Russia has one of the world's worst road safety records with some 25,000 people losing their lives in traffic accidents every year, although the government is seeking to improve the situation with tough measures including a zero tolerance ban on drink driving.