11 school kids perish, driver blamed for recklessness

Eleven young children were killed on Monday, when an overloaded van they were traveling in plunged into a pond in East China's Jiangxi province.

The accident happened near the city of Guixi as the van was taking 15 children to school. Three children died on site. The others were sent to a local hospital but only four survived. All of the 11 victims were between 4 and 6 years old, the Henan Business Daily reported.

The van has only seven seats. The children were attending a primary school that has not been approved by the local government.

The driver is being blamed for speeding and losing control of the van when he tried to avoid farm vehicles parked along the roadside. The driver has been detained by the local police, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

Local government leaders, firefighters, police and medical teams rushed to the site to assist in the rescue works.

Last year, more than 62,000 people died in traffic accidents, according to China News Service.

In August, 36 people died when a double-decker sleeper bus slammed into the rear of a methanol tanker and burst into flames in Shaanxi Province. In November last year, the deaths of 18 young children in a bus crash led authorities to put more money into school bus services, according to previous media reports.