2 dead in truck crash on National Freeway No. 1 in Taichung

Taichung, Jan. 4 (CNA) Two people were killed early Sunday after a small truck crashed and caught fire on National Freeway No. 1 in Taichung, police said.

The National Highway Police Bureau's Third Special Brigade said a preliminary investigation indicated that the vehicle struck a bridge column in a channelized exit lane, fell down a slope and caught fire, resulting in the deaths of both occupants.

Police said they received a report at 5:18 a.m. about the accident at the 168-kilometer mark on the southbound Fengyuan section of National Freeway No. 1.

After police and firefighters arrived at the scene and extinguished the fire, they found two people dead inside the vehicle, they said.

Police have yet to confirm the identities of the two victims and the case has been referred to prosecutors for an autopsy. Police said the exact circumstances and cause of the crash remain under investigation.