Ten people were killed and 20 were injured after a van overloaded carrying 29 migrants crashed on Wednesday. 

The driver of the vehicle was among the deads.

The crash happened shortly after 4 p.m. local time Wednesday in Encino, Texas, about 80 kilometers north of McAllen. Sgt. Nathan Brandley of the Texas Department of Public Safety says the van, designed to hold 15 passengers, was speeding as the driver tried to veer off the highway onto Business Route 281.

 

He lost control of the top-heavy van, which slammed into a metal utility pole and a stop sign.

The van was not being pursued, said Brooks County Sheriff Urbino Martinez.

Martinez said he believed all of the passengers were migrants. Brandley said the death toll was initially announced as 11 but was later revised. He also said the 20 who survived the initial crash all have serious to critical injuries

A surge in migrants crossing the border illegally has brought about an uptick in the number of crashes involving vehicles jammed with migrants who pay large amounts to be smuggled into the country.