Three people were killed and another three were injured in a traffic accident in the downtown area of Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, on Tuesday morning, according to local traffic police.

The injured were sent for medical treatment after the accident occurred around 11 am near Zhongshan Road in Yuexiu district, the police said.

Preliminary investigations indicated that the 64-year-old driver surnamed Chen lost control of the vehicle due to looking at his phone while driving, leading to the accident.

The driver has been brought under police control, with suspicions of driving while impaired ruled out. The accident is still under investigation and processing.