Lahore, May 18 (PTI) At least 14 people of a family, including five children, were killed and 12 injured when a mini-truck in which they were travelling skidded off the road and fell into a ravine in Pakistan’s Punjab province on Saturday, rescue officials said.
According to Rescue 1122, the vehicle was coming from the Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province to the Khushab district of Punjab when the accident occurred.
The incident took place in the Khushab district of the central Punjab province.
The mini-truck, while negotiating a turn, skidded off the road and fell into a ravine at Pench Pir area of Khushab, some 250 kilometres from Lahore.
“As many as 14 people, including five children, died on the spot. Twelve injured have been shifted to a hospital where their condition is stated to be critical,” an official said.
Rescue personnel provided on-site medical aid to four people with minor injuries.
The other eight were rushed to Tehsil Headquarters Hospital Naushera with serious injuries.
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz expressed her grief over the loss of lives in the accident and directed the authorities to provide the injured with the best treatment facilities.
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed heartfelt grief over the accident and extended his condolences to the families of the deceased. He also prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.
Punjab is no stranger to severe road accidents.
In August 2023, at least 18 people were killed when a passenger bus caught fire after colliding with a pick-up truck laden with drums of diesel on the motorway near Pindi Bhattian.
Road accidents with high fatalities are common in the country due to lax safety measures, poor driver training and decrepit transport infrastructure.
Passenger buses and trucks are frequently crammed to capacity and seatbelts are not commonly worn, meaning high death tolls from single-vehicle accidents are common.
Rescue officials said the deceased and the injured belonged to an extended family who were coming to Khushab for labour work. According to a couple of eyewitnesses, the driver lost control of the vehicle because of over-speeding. PTI MZ/AYZ GSP AMS
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