Indonesia: Bus collides with fuel tanker, at least 16 dead

At least 16 people were killed on the Indonesian island of Sumatra when a passenger bus collided head-on with a fuel tanker on a highway.

Four people were injured, officials said.

The collision occurred around noon on the Trans-Sumatra Highway in South Sumatra province, when an intercity bus carrying at least 20 passengers hit a tanker truck traveling in the opposite direction, a local official said.

He said preliminary findings indicate the bus may have sparked shortly before the crash.

This could have prompted the driver to swerve to the right of the road in an attempt to avoid a more serious incident. However, the tanker truck, which was traveling at high speed, was approaching, leaving little time to avoid a head-on collision, he said.

"The violent collision caused a fire that engulfed both vehicles, leaving many victims trapped inside," he said.

The dead included the bus driver and 13 passengers, as well as the driver and assistant from the tanker.

Four passengers survived and were hospitalized.