PK-661 tragedy: Death of family too big a loss for 7th grader

Haseena Gul overwhelmed by grief while collecting bodies of father, mother and four siblings

ISLAMABAD: For more than a week, Haseena Gul, a seventh grade student from Chitral, stayed strong, trying to hold back a grief as insurmountable as the loss of her entire family. It was too much for her tender age. And she broke down on Friday when she came to the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences to collect the mortal remains of her father, mother, and four siblings.

A traumatised Haseena was overwhelmed by grief and dropped unconscious. She was immediately shifted to the Trauma Centre of Pims, right next to the Courtesy Centre, where the charred bodies of her family members were passing through the identification procedure.



Haseena’s father Mirza Gul, mother Gul Huran, two sisters Zahida Parveen and Karina, and two brothers Hassan Ali and Fatman Ali were among the 47 people on board PIA flight PK-661 that crashed into a mountain in Havelian on December 7.

[brid video="85583" player="7247" title="The seventh grade student from Chitral who lost her entire family in PK661 crash"]



Haseena came to Islamabad from Chitral with her uncle, Sher Afzal, a week ago to collect the bodies of her family. “She did not lose courage while travelling to Islamabad and a week thereafter – but today, she broke down, overwhelmed by the grief,” Afzal told The Express Tribune outside the Courtesy Centre.

Haseena had stayed back at home in Chitral to prepare for her exams when the family decided to travel to Islamabad to meet a close relative. “Little did she know that she would never get to see her family again. She saw off her parents and siblings with a broad smile on her face,” recalled Afzal.

Though he knows Haseena needs proper treatment for her trauma, but he decided to take her along the bodies to Chitral on Saturday [today] morning. “I believe she will feel better among her close relatives at our native village,” he said.

PIA spokesperson Daniyal Gilani said that initially the national airline was giving Rs500,000 to the legal heirs of each of the victims to cover for the funeral and burial. “Only Haseena, the next of kin to six victims, hasn’t been paid yet,” he said. “Several people from her village claim to be her relatives, which is why she hasn’t been paid the compensation.”

Gilani said that the PIA would send a team to Chitral to investigate the claims. “We are taking all steps necessary to ensure the compensation amount reaches the rightful heirs,” he added.



Earlier Minister of State for Capital Administration and Development Division Dr Tariq Fazal Chaudhry told journalists that bodies of all crash victims had been identified through DNA verification and that they would be handed over to families by Saturday morning (today). “The bodies of one Chinese and two Austrian nationals, who were also among the victims, will be handed over to their respective embassies.”

Issue of DNA test reports

Mohammad Iqbal, brother of crash victim Shamshad, claimed that the Pims administration had handed over the body of his sister without sharing the DNA test reports.  “I don’t know if I am taking the mortal remains of my sister or of someone else,” he told The Express Tribune.

Shamshad was travelling to Islamabad on PK-661 as she was to see her parents in Faisalabad. “Today, I have come to realise why Allah had not blessed her with a baby even after seven years of her marriage,” he said. Iqbal left for Chitral with the body of his sister by road as he did not have the courage to wait for the next flight in the morning.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 17^th, 2016.