E China pileup death toll increases to 3 with 31 injured

NANJING - An east China highway pile-up on Saturday has killed three people and injured 31 others, local traffic police said Sunday night.

Previous reports said two people were killed and five injured.

Two people died in a local hospital where nine others are being treated. Another person died after treatment failed in a larger hospital in Wuxi where 22 remain hospitalized, Changzhou traffic police updated on its official microblog account at Weibo.com.

The accident occurred on Saturday at the Changzhou section of the highway linking Shanghai and Nanjing. It drew public attention as people began posting photos and videos on Chinese social media WeChat and Weibo. Images showed dozens of trucks, buses and cars crashed into each other in eccentric positions. People were standing on top of the vehicles.

Local police told Xinhua that at least two trucks, three buses and 20 cars were involved. Rainy and foggy weather caused poor visibility and slippery roads.

Saturday was the first day of a three-day national holiday marking the Tomb-Sweeping Day.