Pick-up truck crash kills 18 in Indonesia: Police

JAKARTA - Eighteen people on their way to a funeral were killed when their pick-up truck crashed into a trailer in Indonesia, police said on Sunday.

The pick-up with 31 people on board had attempted to overtake three vehicles but collided with a cargo trailer in Probolinggo district in East Java on Saturday, East Java police spokesman Awi Setyono told AFP.

"The pick-up carrying all-female passengers hit the trailer as it was trying to speed past three vehicles in front by going on the wrong lane," he said.

"Eighteen people were killed, including the male driver and two girls aged five and two."

Thirteen passengers were hospitalised with serious injuries and broken bones. The trailer driver and his assistant were slightly hurt, he said.

Fatal accidents are common on Indonesia's poorly maintained roads, especially on densely populated Java island.