Hanoi - Ten people were killed and 8 others injured in 3 serious traffic accidents over a two-day period in Vietnam, traffic police officials said Tuesday.

On Sunday a driver lost control of his truck whilst negotiating a mountain pass in Son La Province, 300 kilometres north-west of the capital Hanoi. The 15-ton truck had Laos registration plates and was overloaded by 15 tons. It plunged into a 40-metre deep abyss.

"Four people were killed and one seriously injured," said district traffic police head Major Nguyen Dang Quan. The driver was among the dead, he added.

On Monday a truck ploughed into a group of schoolchildren on their way home. The accident occurred in front of the Binh Phuoc A Elementary School in Mang Thit District of Vinh Long Province in south-west Vietnam.

"The accident killed three students," said Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Mong Tua, deputy head of Vinh Long traffic police. The driver fled the accident scene, but gave himself up 30 minutes later.

Late Monday a 16-seat bus travelling south from the resort town of Dalat to Ho Chi Minh City south crashed into a truck travelling the other way when overtaking another bus in Lam Dong Province, police said.

Police said two passengers died immediately and two others died en-route to hospital. Four more are in a serious condition. (dpa)