Ten dead, dozens injured, after bus accident in the Philippines

Ten people have been killed and more than 30 injured after a bus hit several vehicles at a toll gate on one of the busiest highways in northern Philippines, authorities say.

The bus driver, who has been detained, said he had fallen asleep at the wheel, police told AFP, adding that four children were among the dead.

Buses on the nearly 100km (62mi) Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway often ferry workers between Manila and surrounding provinces. The accident on Thursday happened while families were travelling for labour day.

The Department of Transportation ordered the suspension of Solid North Bus, a major bus operator in the region and the company that owned the vehicle involved in the crash.

The bus driver may be charged with “reckless imprudence resulting in multiple homicides,” police told AFP. The bus conductor has also been detained.

The accident also involved three sports utility vehicles and one container truck, the Philippine Red Cross said in a Facebook post.

The organisation said in another post on Wednesday that it was providing food and other aid to people in hospital who were injured by the crash.

Deadly bus accidents are not uncommon in the Philippines.

Drug use among bus drivers have also made headlines in recent weeks – though it is unclear if it was a factor in Thursday’s accident.

In April, some public vehicle companies – including buses, jeepneys and tricycles – faced suspension after 84 of its drivers tested positive for prohibited substances.

Transport Secretary Vince Dizon is set to meet representatives from nearly 30 bus companies on Friday after recent accident, local media reported.

“I will really find out. I will be honest with them. What is going on, why are you all having accidents, why are your drivers all testing positive for drugs,” he said.

“I will be direct with our bus companies because if they don’t get their act together, if they don’t shape up, they will really be sorry.”

In 2023, 17 bus passengers died after the vehicle’s brakes failed and it plunged into a ravine in central Philippines, along a winding road known among locals as the “killer curve”.