A truck packed with pilgrims lost control and fell into a deep ravine in northwestern Pakistan, killing at least 38 people and wounding five others, officials said Monday.  

It was not immediately clear what caused the accident late Sunday near Abbottabad, about 200 kilometers (120 miles) northeast of Peshawar. Authorities transported the bodies and injured to an Abbottabad hospital, said police official Shaukat Khan.

He said the pilgrims were returning from the hill resort of Murree near the capital, Islamabad, after attending a celebration honoring a Muslim saint.

Doctors at Ayub Medical Hospital in Abbottabad confirmed the deaths of 38 people: 23 men, 10 women and five children. All the dead and injured were from the mountainous region of Mansehra, about 150 kilometers (90 miles) northeast of Peshawar.

Fatal road accidents are common in Pakistan, where traffic rules are frequently disregarded and public transport drivers often work long hours.

Peshawar is the capital of Pakistan's North West Frontier Province.

(China Daily via agencies, June 8, 2004)