At least eight people died and 10 others were injured after a passenger bus crashed into a truck on a highway section in the Mekong Delta province of Long An early Monday morning.

The bus was heading for Ho Chi Minh City when it hit the truck, which stopped on the Trung Luong Highway after its tires suddenly went flat, at around 3 a.m. this morning.

Five people on the bus, including the driver, died immediately; three others died after being taken to hospital.

The bus was carrying 19 passengers, including three children.

The bus driver was driving too fast so he could not stop after realizing the truck barricaded the highway, according to eyewitnesses.

The injured people are being treated at Cho Ray Hospital in HCMC.

Local authorities are still investigating the case.