A total of 16 people died early Thursday in two separate road accidents in Nigeria's northwestern state of Katsina, the country's Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) said.

Twenty-two people sustained various degrees of injury, Abdu Bagadawa, a sector commander of the road safety police told Xinhua.

Bagadawa said the first accident, in which nine people were killed and nine injured, occurred in Mani district of the state while the second, which occurred in Kankia district of the state, claimed seven lives and left 13 injured.

The injured have been taken to government hospitals for treatment, he said.

An investigation into the cause of the accidents is underway, he added.

source: Xinhua