Overloaded: One killed, dozens injured as jeep crashes into a house

13 with multiple injuries hospitalised, inquiry ordered.

MIRPUR: A man was killed and several others were injured when an overloaded jeep skidded off Neelum Road and crashed into a house on Monday morning.

According to Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) Transport Authority Secretary Adil Mahmood, the passenger-laden jeep was on its way to Muzaffarabad from Shafi village, when the driver lost control of the vehicle while negotiating a sharp turn and crashed into a house. The deceased man was identified as Muhammad Rafiq, who was a naib qasid in a local government department.

Among the 35 injured, 13 were hospitalised with multiple injuries while the rest were released after receiving first aid.

In the crash, the house was also badly damaged; however, the inmates remained safe.

Overloading by transporters has become a routine matter and has claimed several lives in AJK and across Pakistan. In many cases, transporters can be seen altering their vehicles to increase their seating capacity, which makes them prone to accidents in hilly areas.

Earlier in September, 37 people, mostly schoolchildren, were killed when a 72-seater bus carrying 107 passengers overturned in the hilly area of Kallar Kahar on the Lahore-Islamabad Motorway.

AJK Transport Minister Tahir Khokher has ordered a probe into the incident and directed the transport authority secretary to submit a report as soon as possible.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2012.