Set on fire: Speeding tanker mows down brother, sister
Traffic was suspended for over an hour as people burnt the tankers.
KARACHI:
Tension prevailed in Sakhi Hassan area after a water tanker knocked down two siblings on Monday. An angry crowd of people reacted violently by setting two tankers on fire.
The accident took place near Sakhi Hassan Chowrangi. A speeding tanker collided with a motorcycle and resulted in critical injuries to 24-year-old Hamid Ali and his younger sister, 20-year-old Sabiha. They were taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital where both of them succumbed to their injuries during treatment. The victims were residents of Nusrat Bhutto Colony and were headed towards the Board Office when the accident took place.
Soon after the accident, a score of people gathered on the streets and stopped the water tanker responsible for the accident. They set this and another tanker on fire in protest. A heavy contingent of police reached the site and managed to control the situation. Fire tenders were called by the police to extinguish the fire.
The police detained the drivers of both water tankers while cases against them were being registered. SHO Sajid Javed said that it would be premature to say anything about who was responsible for the accident but he said that the initial investigation suggested that both tanker drivers were speeding and the accident took place when one tanker tried to overtake the other.
According to fire brigade officials, one water tanker was completely burnt, while another was partially damaged. Traffic was also suspended for at least an hour due to the protest by the angry mob.
Protesters said that this was not the first time such an incident took place in the locality, as earlier several people had been killed in the same manner because there were no rules and regulations about how to control heavy vehicles. They also demanded that the water stand be removed from the area.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 3rd, 2012.
Tension prevailed in Sakhi Hassan area after a water tanker knocked down two siblings on Monday. An angry crowd of people reacted violently by setting two tankers on fire.
The accident took place near Sakhi Hassan Chowrangi. A speeding tanker collided with a motorcycle and resulted in critical injuries to 24-year-old Hamid Ali and his younger sister, 20-year-old Sabiha. They were taken to Abbasi Shaheed Hospital where both of them succumbed to their injuries during treatment. The victims were residents of Nusrat Bhutto Colony and were headed towards the Board Office when the accident took place.
Soon after the accident, a score of people gathered on the streets and stopped the water tanker responsible for the accident. They set this and another tanker on fire in protest. A heavy contingent of police reached the site and managed to control the situation. Fire tenders were called by the police to extinguish the fire.
The police detained the drivers of both water tankers while cases against them were being registered. SHO Sajid Javed said that it would be premature to say anything about who was responsible for the accident but he said that the initial investigation suggested that both tanker drivers were speeding and the accident took place when one tanker tried to overtake the other.
According to fire brigade officials, one water tanker was completely burnt, while another was partially damaged. Traffic was also suspended for at least an hour due to the protest by the angry mob.
Protesters said that this was not the first time such an incident took place in the locality, as earlier several people had been killed in the same manner because there were no rules and regulations about how to control heavy vehicles. They also demanded that the water stand be removed from the area.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 3rd, 2012.