Deadly drive: 10 killed as Murree-bound van goes down ravine

Rain, winds blamed for incident, also hamper rescue efforts.

RAWALPINDI:

At least 10 persons were killed and eight injured on Sunday when a passenger van plunged into a deep ravine in the Salgira area in Murree.

According to Rescue 1122, a Rawalpindi-bound van skidded off the road while taking a sharp turn.  Murree Traffic Police Duty Officer Tariq Javed, who participated in the rescue operation, told The Express Tribune that a total of 24 passengers were onboard the vehicle.



“Heavy rain coupled with strong wind reduced visibility, due to which the driver could not judged the direction and lost control over the steering,” he said.

He said the trees prevented the vehicle from directly felling from top to bottom or else the casualty would be high. “10 persons died on the spot including two children, two women and six men,” he said.

He said a total of 18 passengers were on board. However, there were conflicting claims about the driver of the van, identified as Abdul Malik, as a Rawalpindi police spokesperson claimed he had been arrested, while duty officer Tariq Javed said he died on the spot.

A rescue official said six of the eight injured were in critical condition after sustaining multiple injuries. Rescue and police teams were rushed to the site immediately after the accident.

“The trees prevented the vehicle falling at full force, but collisions with them caused most of the casualties,” he said, adding that the injured deemed to be in critical condition were shifted to Pims.

Heavy rain and winds complicated the rescue effort, which saw 16 Rescue officials working with the Murree police and the traffic police.

Dr Farrukh Kamal of Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences said that 10 bodies were shifted to the hospital. Doctors at the emergency unit confirmed that six of them are critically injured.

The deceased were identified as Ashir, Muhammad Ikram, Shahid Mehmood, Muhammad Ziafat, Narmeen, Khalida, Farhan Abbasi, and Umma, while two bodies remain unidentified.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 24^th, 2014.