WASHINGTON: At least 10 people were killed in a Texas road accident involving a truck that authorities suspect was transporting some 30 undocumented migrants, US media said Wednesday.

"Troopers are investigating a major crash" near Falfurrias, a few miles from the Mexican border, the Texas Department of Public Security said in a statement.

The local news channel Valley Central reported that the white truck crashed into a pole around 4:00 pm (2100 GMT), killing 10 people.

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Smugglers often use overcrowded vehicles to ship migrants from the border.

In March, an alleged smuggler was charged after 13 people died in a collision between a heavy truck and a crowded vehicle in southern California.

Migrant arrivals to the United States had declined markedly during the Covid-19 pandemic and began to pick up slightly in 2020, before surging since President Joe Biden took office.

Republicans accuse Biden of causing the spike in migrants by relaxing the draconian migration policies put in place by his predecessor Donald Trump.