12 killed in Mastung highway accident

Van collides with truck due to slippery road after heavy rains

QUETTA: At least 12 people were killed and 17 others injured when a passenger van collided near Mastung on Tuesday.

The accident happened when an over-speeding truck collided with the van coming from the opposite direction at the National Highway near the Dasht area of the district, killing five passengers on the spot while injuring 15 others.

Following the incident, rescuers, police and local people rushed to the site and shifted the bodies and injured to a nearby hospital, where six of them succumbed to their injuries during treatment, said the hospital sources.

“The passenger van was carrying Afghan refugees from Karachi to Qilla Abdullah when it collided with a truck due to over speeding and slipperiness following incessant rains across Balochistan,” said Mastung Assistant Commissioner Mastung Mudasir Ahmed.



A hospital official said that the death toll might further rise as several injured were in critical conditions which include women and children.

The ill-fated van was heading towards the provincial capital of Quetta from the southern port city of Karachi when the accident occurred.

The passenger van was completely destroyed in the accident, with authorities retrieving the bodies of the dead and injured after cutting parts of the van.

Footage emerged from the scene of the accident showed people splashing water on the passenger van which had caught fire after the collision and completely destroyed.

Police officials in the area said the accident happened due to over-speeding and negligence of the truck driver, and that a case has been registered against the driver over negligence

The deceased were identified as Muhammad Rasool, Khan Agha, Syed Khan, Abdul Rehman, Shabir Agha, Syed Khan, Haji Muhammad Khan, Bibi Zarkan, Bibi Gulla, a child Shams ullah and girl Farzana.

Most of the victims were reported to be members of one family. The deceased's bodies were sent to native town after completion of medico legal formalities. (With additional input from Agencies)