Local officials say that more than 78 people have been killed after a truck overturned in an accident in Central African Republic's city of Bambari.

Oumar Tidjani, a member of the young Muslims association of Ouaka, said Thursday that 75 others were injured at the Ngouro bridge about 13 kilometers (8 miles) from Bambari. He said the victims are mostly traders who piled into the truck to go to the weekly market in Maloum.

Hospital workers confirmed that 59 bodies are in the morgue and at least 18 others are with families for burial.

The president's office appealed to drivers to not transport so many people at once given the terrible conditions of the roads.

International Red Cross workers in Bambari are helping to treat and transfer the wounded.