Runaway bus kills 34 people in Haitian city of Gonaives

The vehicle travelling to Port-au-Prince first knocked over two pedestrians, killing one.

The driver rammed the bus into a rara parade, a traditional street celebration involving local musicians, leaving dozens dead, according to unconfirmed reports.

He  then tried to flee the scene. Witnesses gathered at the scene became hostile after seeing him attempting to escape, which caused further deaths and injuries. They tried to burn the vehicle with the passengers inside.

The Sunday incident in Gonaives located 150km (90 miles) north of the capital, Port-au-Prince left dozens of people injured, who were quickly transported to hospital by the emergency services, Reuters news agency reports.

"The bus, the passengers and the driver were all placed into the care of the local authorities", said Faustin Joseph, a civic protection co-ordinator for the Artibonite region.

It was not immediately clear what caused it to veer off course.