Road collision: Two dozen lives lost in Bahawalpur crash

Passenger van crashes into truck near bypass.

BAHAWALPUR:

At least 24 people, including women and children, were killed and nine others critically injured when a passenger van collided with a truck near a bypass in Bahawalpur.

Highway police Inspector Amir Shahzad told The Express Tribune that the van, which was overloaded with passengers, was en route from Mubarikpur to Bahawalpur. It collided with the truck while making a blind turn onto a service road near the bypass.

Shahzad said that the van driver died on the spot, while the passengers in the truck, including the driver, were critically injured.

Rescue 1122 officials had to cut open the truck’s body to rescue the passengers, who were then shifted to the Bhawal Victoria Hospital (BVH).

Abdul Sattar, an eyewitness, told The Express Tribune that it seemed that both drivers refused to hit the brakes, adding that both vehicles were speeding, which was the main cause of the accident.

Rescue 1122 official Asif Rahim Channer told The Express Tribune that they received a call informing them about the accident at 11:40 am. After arriving at the spot, they recovered 20 bodies and shifted 10 people to the BVH, he added. One of the injured victims died on the way to the hospital.

District Police Officer Bahawalpur Sohail Habib Tajik told The Express Tribune that 14 of the deceased have been identified and their bodies would be handed over to their families.

He also confirmed that 13 men, seven women and four children were killed in the incident. According to him, both drivers were killed.

DPO Tajik added that a case has been registered at the Samma Satta Police Station.

In charge of BVH Emergency Dr Mohammad Aziz told The Express Tribune that they were doing their best to save the lives of the injured passengers.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 31^st, 2012.