DG Khan crash shatters Eid dreams of labourers

Bus was overloaded with workers going to Rajanpur

DERA GHAZI KHAN:

A 46-seat bus whose collision with a trailer truck left at least 34 people dead on Monday morning was carrying about 60 passengers inside and 15 on the roof.

Over 40 people were injured in the accident that took place on the Indus Highway in Dera Ghazi Khan district.

According to eyewitnesses, there were about 60 people inside and 15 on the roof of the bus traveling from Daska area of Sialkot to Rajanpur. The driver lost control over the vehicle due to high speed and it collided with the truck near Jhuk Yar Shah on Taunsa Bypass.

Most of the passengers of the bus were labourers who worked in factories in Sialkot and were on their way home for the Eidul Azha holidays.

Five members of a family were among those killed in the accident. Muhammad Tanveer told The Express Tribune that his younger brother, uncle and three cousins, sons of Khadim, a resident of Kotla Sher Muhammad, had died in the incident. The deceased worked in a factory in Sialkot and and were returning to their hometown together to spend the Eid holidays.

Tanveer said his brother had told him over phone at five o'clock in the morning that the bus had crossed the Taunsa Barrage. "After some time, he informed me that he and our other relatives would soon reach DG Khan. However, I received a phone call 10 minutes later and the caller informed me that the bus had met with an accident."

He said the Eid had turned into an occasion of mourning for his family that had lost five members coming home for the holidays. "We will never forget this tragedy." An emergency was declared at the Dera Ghazi Khan Teaching Hospital after the accident.

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According to Rescue 1122 Regional Emergency Officer Dr Natiq Hayat Ghalzai, the injured and the bodies had been shifted to the hospital. He said the condition of eight injured persons was critical and the death toll might rise.

According to local people, police and district administration officials rushed to the spot immediately after the accident was reported and launched a rescue operation.

Divisional Commissioner Dr Irshad Ahmed, who oversaw the operation, said the injured were being treated at the teaching hospital, while the bodies had been handed over to the next of kin after identification. The families had taken the bodies of their loved ones to their native areas, he added.

The official said most of the victims were from the Muhammadpur, Fazilpur, Jampur and Dera Kot areas of Rajanpur district. A help desk was also set up for sharing information related to the victims.

A passenger, Faiz Mohammad, who was undergoing treatment for head injuries suffered in the accident, said the bus was taking a turn near the bypass when an explosion occurred. He said he fell unconscious and found himself in the hospital when he regained consciousness.

Muhammad Shoaib said he had boarded the bus from Sialkot for Rajanpur. He said he did not understand how the accident happened. Another injured passenger called for action against speeding by drivers on the highways.

On February 16, four members of a family were killed while four others sustained injuries after a car plunged into a canal in Sargodha.

Amjad Fareed, a resident of Lahore, along with his seven family members, was travelling to the provincial capital in his car when fell into a canal near Jamia Qasmiya pull in Lahore Road.

Reportedly, the speeding car crashed due to dense fog in the area.

On January 3, three members of a family were killed while five others suffered injuries when a van overturned while avoiding hitting a roadside tree on Kamalia Road near Chichawatni.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 20^th, 2021.