LUSAKA: Zambian police Friday charged an elderly farmer with causing a deadly high-speed collision between a bus and a truck that killed 53, the police chief said.

The bus crashed into an oncoming truck on Thursday after swerving to avoid 74-year-old farmer Abraham van Eeden's vehicle, which was overtaking the truck, according to police chief Stella Libongani.

"From our investigations, the driver of the Land Cruiser ... is the cause of the accident and has since been charged with 51 counts of causing death by dangerous driving," Libongani said in a statement.

President Michael Sata had said 53 people died in the crash, which happened 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of the capital Lusaka.

It was not immediately clear why 51 counts were entered.

Pictures from the scene showed bloodied and lifeless bodies lying next to the mangled wreckage of the vehicles.

Sata has declared three days of national mourning from Monday for one of the country's deadliest accidents in recent history.