Thirteen people were killed and at least 30 more injured when a military transport truck flipped over on a major road in the Sierra Leone capital on Monday, a military spokesman said.
The open-air truck was carrying more than 40 soldiers from their barracks to a funeral in Freetown when its brakes failed as it descended a steep hill. It toppled over and slid for more than 30 metres, Captain Yaya Brima said. Eight soldiers were among the dead, reports Reuters.
“This is a real tragedy for us,” he said by telephone when contacted by Reuters.
“We’re currently investigating what could have happened to have caused one of our own vehicles to have failed in such a catastrophic way.”