ABIDJAN -- At least 14 people were killed and 21 others injured Saturday morning in a road accident in northern Cote d'Ivoire, according to an official statement.

The accident took place at around 5 am on a road in the Kabadougou region and involved a truck transporting cereals and illegally carrying 69 passengers, the country's Ministry of Transport said in the statement.

Amadou Kone, minister of transport, has instructed officials from the Kabadougou regional transport authority to go immediately to the scene to collect initial information on the tragedy.

Kone urged vehicle drivers to carry out all necessary technical checks before hitting the road and called on all road users to strictly comply with traffic regulations.