14 injured in stampede in Nowshera

Hospital authorities in Nowshera confirm that some of the injured are in critical condition and may not survive.

NOWSHERA:

At least 14 people sustained injuries in a stampede during a distribution of Watan cards at a centre in Nowshera district on Wednesday, the district administration said.

The cards, meant for flood affected people, were to be distributed at a camp set up by the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) at the Government High School N0 1 Nowshera Cantt.

According to sources, at least 2,000 cards had to be distributed at the centre; however, the number of people gathered for collection surged to around 10,000.

The stampede occurred when gates to a school – the distribution point – opened letting people enter in droves, a source told The Express Tribune.

He said that the school was located a bit lower as compared to the ground outside the gates where the people were waiting. When they tried to enter the gate, they crushed each other in the ensuing panic. The injured were rushed to the District Headquarters Hospital Nowshera.

Though the district administration put the number of injured at 14, sources said that at least 25 people were injured in the incident and the rest were referred to Lady Reading Hospital (LRH) Peshawar.

The sources said that unknown persons had made an announcement to gather the people at the centre in nearby villages through loudspeakers.

Earlier, there were reports that three persons were killed, but District Coordination Officer (DCO) Nowshera, Ali Anan Qamar, denied any such causality. He said that the reports of the deaths were ‘mere rumors’ that spread due to the large number of the people who turned up at the centre.

Meanwhile, there were reports of similar incidents which left many injured  at camps in Multan and Rahim Yar Khan.

Also on Wednesday, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan hoti inaugurated the distribution of Watan cards among flood victims. The distribution will take at least two months in the province.

The chief minister distributed at least 60 cards to the victims at the Army Supply Crops (ASC) Centre in Nowshera.

Addressing at the occasion, Hoti said that the government authorities have registered at least 600,000 destroyed houses in K-P and that the government will continue to help the affected people.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 30th, 2010.