6 killed in S. Tanzania road accident

At least six Ethiopian illegal immigrants were killed and eight others were injured early Thursday morning after their truck plunged into a gorge in Njombe Region in Tanzania’s Southern Highlands, the police said.

John Imori, Njombe regional police commander, said the truck that was also ferrying construction materials, including iron sheets and tiles, was heading to Zambia from the port of Dar es Salaam.

“The truck plunged into the gorge in Iyai village along the Dar es Salaam-Zambia highway at around 4:30 a.m., local time, killing the six Ethiopian illegal immigrants on the spot,” Imori told a news conference in Njombe.

The injured Ethiopian illegal immigrants were rushed to Ilembula Hospital in the region where their condition was described as improving, said Imori, adding that preliminary investigations revealed that the illegal immigrants had entered the country without valid travel documents.

The police have launched a manhunt for the truck driver who disappeared after the accident, he added.