LANZHOU - A vehicle carrying railway construction workers overturned in northwest China's Gansu Province Saturday, killing 23 people and injuring five others, local authorities said.

The accident happened at about 7:30 am in the Manwa Township in Lintao county, when the vehicle was travelling to a railway construction site, the Gansu Provincial Work Safety Administration announced in a statement.

It was not immediately known about how many workers were aboard the vehicle.

An initial investigation shows that a brake failure was to blame for the accident, a spokesman with the local railway authorities said.