At least two dead and 18 injured as truck ploughs into busy market in South Korea

Two people who suffered cardiac arrest following the crash were later confirmed to have died, local media reports.

The vehicle is understood to have ploughed 150 metres along a passageway lined with stalls before it came to a halt.

The driver was not intoxicated when tested for alcohol, a police official said.

The official added that authorities will hand the truck over to investigators to help determine the cause of the crash.

A man, believed to be aged in his 60s, is being questioned by police.

CCTV footage aired on Korean television showed shoppers going about their business before a blue truck crashes into one of the stores.

Pictures from the scene showed a truck against a storefront, with a number of clothing items strewn across the ground.

The vehicle can be seen with a smashed windscreen and damage to its frontage.

One trader, 43-year-old Jin, told local media he was eating inside a store at the market when he heard "screams" followed by a "loud noise" as the truck went by.

Another person said the noise from the crash was "so loud that it felt like the building was collapsing".

Bucheon is located about 20km (12.43 miles) west of the South Korea's capital Seoul.

According to figures published by the country's Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, around 3.4million international tourists visited Korea between January and March last year, marking the highest quarterly volume since Covid 19.

In March, 2024, alone, about 1.5 million visitors were recorded, which was the highest monthly figure post-pandemic.