Nine killed, 36 injured as passenger coach overturns on Makran Coastal Highway

At least nine people were killed and 36 others injured when a passenger coach overturned on the Makran Coastal Highway near Gwadar in Balochistan, police said on Saturday.

The accident occurred near the Hudd Goth area of Ormara when a Karachi-bound coach travelling to Jiwani lost control and overturned due to overspeeding, according to Coastal Highway police. The vehicle belonged to a private transport company, Al Usman.

SP Aslam Bangulzai stated that preliminary investigations suggested overspeeding as the primary cause of the crash, adding that the driver lost control of the vehicle.

Rescue teams rushed to the scene and shifted the bodies and injured passengers to Ormara Tehsil Hospital. Hospital officials said several of the injured were in critical condition.

Read: 14 killed, 29 injured in Jhang road crash

Police said further investigations were underway, while details regarding the driver and the transport company were being collected.

Meanwhile, Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti expressed grief over the loss of lives and extended condolences to the bereaved families. He directed the Gwadar deputy commissioner to ensure the provision of immediate and best possible medical treatment for the injured and ordered the provision of ambulance services to transport the bodies to the victims’ native areas.

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The chief minister also sought a detailed report on the incident and ordered an inquiry to determine the causes of the accident. He said the provincial government stood with the affected families in this difficult time.

The Makran Coastal Highway has witnessed several serious traffic accidents in the past, with experts citing overspeeding, long-distance travel, poor road conditions in some areas and inadequate vehicle maintenance as contributing factors.