32 burn to death in Nigeria bus crash: official

KANO, Nigeria (AFP) - Thirty-two people were burnt to death Thursday when two buses collided in the northern Nigerian state of Bauchi, a road safety official said.

"There were 32 people in the two buses and all of them burnt to death when the two buses caught fire on collision," Ibrahim Usman Gaidam, the head of the state arm of the Federal Road Safety Commission, told AFP.

The accident occurred in the village of Kuskure when the two buses belonging to the state-run transport company Yobe collided at a road construction site and burst in flames, said Gaidam.

"The buses were coming from opposite directions and collided head-on at a road diversion due to ongoing dualisation work on the highway," Gaidam said.

Accidents are common on poorly maintained Nigerian roads mainly because of speeding, careless driving and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, has one of the highest fatal road accidents on the continent, according to officials.