‘Drowsy driver’ crashes tourist bus into billboard; kills 14 

Surabaya: In an unfortunate incident, at least 14 people were killed and more than a dozen others sustained injuries after, apparently, a drowsy driver slammed the tourist bus into a billboard on a highway on Indonesia’s main island of Java. 

The ill-fated bus, carrying Indonesian tourists from Surabaya was returning from a trip to Central Java’s Dieng Plateau, a popular mountain resort, when it hit an advertising sign on the Mojokerto toll road just after dawn. 

Nineteen people are being treated in four hospital, mostly for broken bones. Reportedly, the driver also suffered severe injuries. 

Television news showed police and medical personnel removing victims from the bus, which crashed just 400 meters (yards) before the highway exit. 

Authorities are still investigating the cause of the accident, but that the driver reportedly appeared sleepy before the incident. 

Road accidents are common in Indonesia because of poor safety standards and infrastructure. 

The victims were from Benowo, a village near Surabaya, and were returning home after a long weekend at popular holiday destination Dieng Plateau. 

A police report stated that both weather and traffic were clear when the accident occurred. 

In April, 16 people were killed when a truck carrying miners crashed into a cliff in West Papua province.