A sleeper bus with 22 people on board plunged into a gorge while driving on an expressway in central Vietnam’s Da Nang City early Tuesday morning, leaving three dead and injuring the others.

The fatal accident occurred at about 1:30 am on Tuesday when the 40-seat sleeper boarding 19 passengers, along with a driver and his two assistants, drove out of its lane on the La Son - Tuy Loan Expressway in the city’s Hoa Vang District, crashed into the guard rail on the opposite lane, and then fell into a stream in a gorge, local traffic police reported.

This image shows rescuers carrying out their duties at the scene of the deadly traffic accident in an abyss in central Vietnam’s Da Nang City on early morning of January 23, 2024. Photo: H.B. / Tuoi Tre

At the time of the accident, the bus driver, P.T.T., 36, a resident of the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak, was driving the vehicle on the route from Dak Lak to Thua Thien Hue in the central region in a torrential rain.

Traffic police officers, rescuers, ambulances and specialized vehicles were deployed to the scene for rescue and salvage operations. 

The accident killed three people on the spot and injured all the others, leaving three in a serious condition, according to initial reports from local police.

The injured victims were brought to the Da Nang General Hospital and the Hoa Vang District Health Center for emergency treatment.

Fire trucks are seen deployed on the La Son-Tuy Loan Expressway section in central Vietnam’s Da Nang City, from which a sleeper car fell into an abyss on early morning of January 23, 2024. Photo: H.B. / Tuoi Tre

Traffic police officers conducted an examination of the scene, where the sleeper bus was seriously damaged.

The La Son-Tuy Loan freeway, which spans 66 km, connects the La Son intersection in Phu Loc District of Thua Thien Hue Province and the Tuy Loan junction in Hoa Vang District.

The expressway, which was opened to traffic in April 2022 at a cost of US$465.3 million, currently has two lanes in its first phase before being expanded into four lanes in its second phase expected to start in June this year.

In mid-2023, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper published an article pointing out the risks to traffic safety on the expressway after it was opened to traffic for more than a year.

Fire trucks are seen deployed on the La Son-Tuy Loan Expressway section in central Vietnam’s Da Nang City, from which a sleeper car fell into an abyss on early morning of January 23, 2024. Photo: H.B. / Tuoi Tre

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