Santiago, Dominican Republic, Sep 7 (EFE).- Haitian and Dominican authorities are jointly investigating a road accident in which 20 people died and 17 others were injured, officials said here Tuesday.
The accident occurred Monday in Limonase, Haiti, and involved a truckload of Haitians returning from a binational market in the Dominican province of Dajabon.
Mari Luz Pie and Rosse Silboney, two of the injured, told media that the truck was carrying at least 60 people from the Haitian border town of Ouanaminthe to Cap-Haitien, the country's second city.
"The truck was packed with people. They were even sitting on the fenders because no one wanted to be left behind, we all just wanted to get home however we could," Silboney said.
The Dominican Daniel Valdez, who works for a company building a highway between Ouanaminthe and Cap-Haitien, told Efe that at the scene of the accident there were "at least 20 bodies."
"There were many dead - I counted 20 but they tell me there are more," he said.
Survivors said the truck hit a motorcycle carrying three people, and following the impact plunged into a ravine.
The Haitian deputy consul in Dajabon, Yonat Jean, confirmed to the press that the authorities of her country are investigating the causes of the accident, for which they asked the Dominican Republic's aid.
Thirteen of the injured were taken to public hospitals in the Dominican provinces of Dajabon and Santiago, but medical authorities said Tuesday that seven have now been released.
The survivors also said that since transportation from Ouanaminthe to Cap-Haitien is difficult, the truckdriver took on a great number of passengers in a hurry to get home however they could.
Dominican emergency services personnel were sent to the scene of the accident to help with the rescue work, Civil Defense in Dajabon said.
