SHENZHEN - Human error was blamed for a deadly bus crash in downtown Shenzhen Tuesday as the driver had mistakenly stepped on the accelerator instead of the brake while starting his vehicle, local traffic police said Sunday.

The accident occurred Tuesday afternoon when a long-distance bus lost control and crashed into pedestrians near a parking lot in the city's Luohu district, killing five people.

An investigation showed that the bus driver, surnamed Deng, started the vehicle without observing the neighboring traffic situation first. He attempted to stop the bus when he suddenly saw someone in front of the vehicle, but he mistook the accelerator as the brake, a spokesman with the Shenzhen Traffic Police BUreau said.

Mechanical failure of the bus had been ruled out, the spokesman said.

The driver would be prosecuted, he added.

Three Hong Kong residents, including two men aged 60 and 45, as well as a woman in her sixties, were among the deceased. A 4-year-old boy from southwest Chongqing municipality was also killed, police said.

Of the other five injured, one was seriously hurt and remains in critical condition, police said.