The accident occurred when a pickup truck with 16 people on board fell into a ravine in the mountainous Santiago area of Nuevo Leon state, said district director of Civil Protection Erik Cavazos.

Eleven of the occupants of the vehicle died at the site and one more, a minor, died in hospital, Cavazos added.

Four other people remained hospitalized due to injuries sustained after the 120-meter (almost 400-foot) fall.

David de la Pena, Santiago's municipal president, said that the accident could have been caused by a mechanical failure, as there were no marks on the road to indicate the brakes had been applied.

The vehicle's fall caused a forest fire that was later extinguished, according to the Civil Protection department.

On March 11, two highway accidents left 32 people dead in the north and south of Mexico.

In addition, in one of the most tragic incidents so far this year, a collision between a cargo truck and a passenger bus caused the deaths of 38 people on February 8 in the southeastern state of Campeche.

Road disasters in Mexico, which usually involve cargo trucks, have multiplied in recent years. The main causes are the poor condition of the vehicles, recklessness or driver fatigue.