Seoul, Mar 8 (IANS): At least three people were confirmed dead and 17 others injured as a truck hit a queue of people waiting to vote for an agricultural cooperative chief in southwestern South Korea, Yonhap news agency reported on Wednesday.

The one-tonne truck carrying fertilizer crashed into a group of about 20 people at around 10:30 a.m. local time at the parking lot of an agricultural cooperative building in Sunchang, some 240 km south of Seoul, who were waiting in line to cast their ballots for the election of a new cooperative leader.

Three people were killed, and five others were seriously wounded. The number of casualties could rise further given that most of the victims were elderly.

Twelve people sustained minor injuries, who were also sent to nearby hospitals for treatment.

The truck driver, a man in his 70s, was arrested as a red-handed offender at the scene.

The police were investigating the exact cause of the accident, believing that it was possibly caused by poor driving.