Four killed, 25 injured as bus overturns

Separate accidents leave four more dead, including two women; 'killer' tanker torched

KARACHI:

Four people, including two women, lost their lives and at least 25 others were injured when a speeding passenger bus overturned on the Gulshan-e-Hadeed Link Road while travelling from Hyderabad to Karachi.

According to police, the driver lost control of the vehicle, causing it to flip and injure many of the passengers onboard. Officers quoting the passengers said that the fatal road crash occurred at 6:30 am on Link Road Kathore towards the National Highway near the Samandari Baba Shrine. The driver dozed off and the bus veered off the road and overturned, they said.

Rescue teams, police, and local residents rushed to the scene upon receiving information of the accident. The injured were shifted to Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) and a private hospital via ambulances.

The deceased were identified as 35-year-old Kausar, 60-year-old Pana, 59-year-old Abdul Ghafoor, and 25-year-old Ghulam Fareed. All were residents of different areas and were reportedly en route to Karachi from Hyderabad. Police said the bodies would be handed over to their families after the completion of legal formalities.

In a separate incident, a man was killed after being hit by a speeding vehicle near Chakar Hotel on the Super Highway. Rescue workers shifted the body to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital. The deceased was identified as 30-year-old Elahi Bakhsh, son of Mithal, a resident of the Chakar Hotel area. Police later handed over the body to his heirs.

Meanwhile, two more people, including a woman, died in separate traffic accidents involving heavy vehicles.

In the Korangi Industrial Area, a speeding water tanker rammed into a motorcycle near the Korangi Crossing river. As a result, 40-year-old Rehana, who was riding the motorcycle, died on the spot while her husband sustained injuries. Both were shifted to JPMC for treatment.

Following the accident, enraged residents of Korangi set the water tanker on fire and assaulted the vehicle's cleaner, leaving him seriously injured. The injured cleaner was also taken to JPMC for medical aid.

Police, traffic officials, and Rangers reached the site and called in the fire brigade, which managed to douse the flames. However, the front section of the tanker was completely burnt. DSP Traffic Korangi, Shabbir Memon, told The Express Tribune that the deceased woman and her husband were domestic workers and were travelling from Korangi to Defence when the incident occurred.

In yet another incident, a motorcyclist was killed and another was injured after a trailer hit their motorcycle near the Ghaghar Phatak U-turn, within the limits of the Bin Qasim Town police station. Rescue teams rushed both men to a nearby hospital. The deceased was identified as 38-year-old Sawab Khan, and the injured as 35-year-old Manzoor Hussain.

Meanwhile, 35-year-old Saiqa Bibi was crushed to death by a speeding tanker while she was crossing a road with her two women companions near Superhighway on Friday night.