China: 19 killed, several injured as truck hits funeral procession

At least 19 people lost their lives and 20 others were injured in a road mishap in eastern China's Jiangxi Province on January 8, PTI reported.

The incident took place in Nanchang County, where a speeding truck hit a funeral procession. An investigation into the cause of the accident is underway.

The dreadful mishap happened after the President Xi Jinping-led Chinese Government lifted all restrictions under the zero-covid policy and opened internal and external travel, ahead of the Chinese New Year and Spring Festival. The festival will start on January 22.

This year, 2.09 billion passenger trips are anticipated during the 40-day Chunyun, or Spring Festival. This number is an increase of 99.5 percent from 2022.

Covid-19 cases in China are continuously increasing and the rush expected during the festival raises concerns about a spike in positive cases.

The passenger volume has rapidly scaled up following the country's optimised epidemic response and amid the release of pent-up demand for travel, China's Ministry of Transport (MOT) said on Friday.