At least 11 dead in van crash near U.S.-Mexico border in Texas, another dozen people injured

At least 11 people died and a dozen more were injured Wednesday when an overloaded van crashed Wednesday about 50 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border in south Texas.

Law enforcement officials said the van was not being pursued when it crashed, The Associated Press reported. Police suspect the passengers were immigrants.

Police said the van rounded a curve too fast on U.S. Route 281, then hit a utility pole and a stop sign near Encino, Texas, about 75 miles southwest of Corpus Christi, according to local NBC affiliate KRIS-TV.

Police said the van was designed to hold 15 people but was carrying an estimated 25, including the driver, the AP reported.

It’s at least the third major crash near the border this year. On March 2, 13 people were killed when a packed SUV collided with a gravel-hauling truck in Southern California. Two weeks later, eight people died when a pickup truck hit another vehicle while attempting to avoid police.