Johannesburg - Twenty-five people were killed in South Africa's eastern Mpumalanga province Wednesday when two trucks, one of which was taking people to work, collided head-on and overturned, SAfm public radio reported.

The radio report said only two out of 27 people involved in the early-morning crash had survived. It was not clear whether they were injured.

Emergency workers were at the scene to try to remove victims trapped in the wreckage.

Mpumalanga is a busy transit corridor linking Gauteng province, Africa's wealthiest region where Johannesburg is located, with Maputo and Beira ports across the border in Mozambique.

After violence, road accidents are the second-biggest cause of non-natural deaths in South Africa, claiming 11,577 lives between April 1, 2007 and March 31, 2008, according to government statistics.

A surge in the number of cars on the road, the poor state of repair of many vehicles and high levels of drink-driving are all factors contributing to the carnage. (dpa)