The accident took place in the northern Hoa Binh Province at 0:30 a.m. when the five-ton Laos-registered truck carrying iron and a Vietnamese passenger bus collided, killing the latter’s driver and two other people and injuring 37.

The government quickly ordered the Ministry of Transport to check the licenses and operations of foreign vehicles and crack down on violations by them.

At the scene of the accident, local residents had to break windows to bring passengers out. Around 40 people were taken to hospital, with two dying en route in the ambulance.

The truck was flipped to one side while the bus was badly damaged.

The government also instructed the ministry to probe Long Giang Company, which owns the bus involved in the accident.

Another passenger bus belonging to this company plowed into a funeral procession, killing seven and seriously injuring one in the northern Vinh Phuc Province three months ago.

In Vietnam, a transport company’s license will be revoked indefinitely if in a period of one year more than 50 percent of their operating vehicles cause serious traffic accidents.

Road accidents are a leading killer in Vietnam, with one person dying almost every hour. More than 18,720 accidents occurred in 2018, killing 8,244 people and injuring nearly 14,800, according to the National Traffic Safety Committee.