Nine people were killed Thursday when a van packed with as many as 18 people overturned on a quiet desert road in Arizona, police said.
The incident occurred close to the town of Florence just outside Phoenix and the occupants were believed to have been undocumented immigrants, according to the state's Department of Public Safety.
Nine survivors were rushed to area hospitals. Television pictures showed a crumpled white vehicle next to a desert road that was lined with a row of body bags, the dpa reported.
The Arizona Daily Star reported that officials from the Mexican consulate were on the scene, but had so far declined to confirm that the victims were undocumented immigrants.