Speeding bus kills three in Karachi

Protesters set bus on fire in anger; initial reports suggest brakes of the bus had failed

KARACHI: Three people were killed and seven others injured when a speeding bus ran them over on Tuesday in Karachi's Liaquatabad area.

Enraged by the incident, protesters set the bus on fire. The police had to resort to aerial firing to disperse the angry protesters.

As per initial reports, the brakes of the bus had failed and as the driver tried to steer it off the bridge, the bus hit a rickshaw, a motorcycle and people waiting on the bus stop.

"People sitting in a rickshaw were killed," police said.

On Monday, two children were crushed to death while three others were critically wounded in a road accident on Northern Bypass.

The accident took place at Madina Colony near Northern Bypass within the limits of Manghopir police station. The drivers of three water tankers were racing along the road when one of them struck the children. As a result, two of them were killed on the spot, while three others were critically injured.

Read: Reckless driving: Speeding tanker kills two children returning home from school

Following the accident, scores of people, including families and relatives of the victims staged a protest on Northern Bypass and blocked it for traffic. The protesters demanded the Rangers DG, Sindh IG and Traffic DIG to come up with a reliable strategy to curb such accidents and save innocent lives.

The protesters lamented that these types of accidents had become a norm as water tankers were being used by illegal hydrants operating in the area. These water tankers were usually seen speeding along the almost empty roads, with no regard for the speed limit, they claimed. Police officials reached the site and dispersed the protesters after assuring them of full cooperation.

Further, in another incident on Monday two men were crushed to death by a speeding dumper truck near Toll Plaza.