WATCH: Over a dozen killed after fuel tanker hits bus in Iranian Kurdistan

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – An overnight collision between a fuel tanker and a passenger bus in Iranian Kurdistan (Rojhilat) killed 13 people, state media reported early Wednesday.

The tanker crashed into the bus in Sanandaj (Sine), a city in Rojhilat, some 400 kilometers (250 miles) west of Tehran.

The incident occurred after just after the bus pulled out of a bus terminal in the city and resulted in both vehicles bursting into flames, authorities said.

According to police, the tankers’ brakes failed, causing it to crash into the bus, which led to a large explosion, causing damage to three additional vehicles nearby.

The explosion killed 12 passengers and the truck driver, officials from the Sine firefighter department stated.

The tanker, which carried 18,000 liters of fuel, was completely destroyed, the department added. It was suggested that the fuel was oil from Kirkuk, but authorities have yet to confirm this.

Following the incident, the Governor of the province of Kurdistan, where Sine is located, declared three days of public mourning.

The United Nations (UN) has reported that Iran’s rate of traffic automobile accidents is 20 times the world’s average, as the country suffers from poor roads and lax traffic enforcement.

Editing by John J. Catherine