Quick-thinking residents rescue 15 children from burning van in Karachi

Vehicle caught fire allegedly due to a short-circuit in its wiring


Our Correspondent January 06, 2019
Children look into the burnt out hi-roof van, which caught fire because of short-circuit. PHOTO: ONLINE

KARACHI: A Suzuki Hi-roof transporting 15 children to school caught fire at around 8am on Saturday, apparently due to a short circuit, near the Qatar Hospital in Orangi Town. All 15 students survived with minor burns courtesy of the quick thinking of people present in the vicinity, as they launched an ad-hoc rescue operation to take the children out of the burning vehicle.

The van itself burned to ashes despite the rescuers' best efforts. Five of the more severely injured children were taken to the Dr Ruth Pfao Civil Hospital's Burns Ward, where they were treated for superficial burns that covered 12 to 13 per cent of their bodies. The children were sent home after treatment.

The remaining ten students were taken to Qatar Hospital for minor burns and smoke related injuries. They too were discharged shortly after being admitted.

Emergency service: Citizens misuse Rescue 1122 helpline in Bhakkar

Short-circuit

The day started off as routine for the students and the van driver alike when suddenly the van stopped working. The vehicle was pushed off the road and the driver tinkered with the engine's wiring. It was when he tried to restart the car that the wires short-circuited and the van caught fire. The driver managed to jump of the vehicle unhurt, while the residents helped the children.

The latter were immediately taken to the nearby Qatar Hospital on motorcycles. Back at the scene, more residents gathered to try to put out the fire with water and sand. However, flames quickly engulfed the van and it burned to ashes.

Eyewitnesses and the victim's parents told The Express Tribune that the children were residents of different parts of Orangi Town and were students of Afnan School near Kati Pahari.

One of the parents, Azeemuddin, told The Express Tribune that he had also suffered burns on his right arm while attempting to rescue the children, as he had just dropped off his daughter to the van when it caught fire. "It was a miracle that the children were rescued just after the van caught fire," he said.

Driver surrenders

Later in the day, the van driver, Muhammad Rasheed, surrendered himself to the police.

Rasheed told The Express Tribune that he had been transporting students to and from school for the last six years. As was the norm, he was on his morning round on Saturday when his vehicle stopped working near the Qatar Hospital. That is where the van caught fire.

In response to a question, the van driver told The Express Tribune that both LPG and CNG cylinders were installed in the vehicle. The LPG cylinder was installed in the front, under the passenger seat while the CNG cylinder was installed in the trunk. On Saturday, the van was running on CNG, while the LPG cylinder was empty.

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Police rhetoric

Hours later, Traffic DIG Javed Mehar ordered a departmental inquiry into the incident and terminated the Orangi Town Section Officer Manzoor Hussain.

DIG Mehar told The Express Tribune that action will also be taken against other senior officials if they were found to be involved in the incident. He said that an LPG cylinder was placed unprotected near the driving seat which could have caused a serious accident had it exploded in the fire.

The DIG added that there is already a city-wide ban on the use of CNG cylinders in school vans. Section officers have been instructed to check school and college vans on a daily basis and take appropriate action against those using CNG cylinders. 

Published in The Express Tribune, January 6th, 2019.

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