At least 18 people killed in bus fire near Pindi Bhattian

At least 18 people have been killed and 15 others wounded in an accident as a passenger bus caught fire near Pindi Bhattian early this morning, Geo News reported Sunday.  

DPO Dr Fahad confirmed that the bodies of at least 18 passengers have been taken out from the bus after breaking the window panes of the bus. He confirmed that the injured had been taken to the hospital, where at least four were in critical condition.

The DPO said that the pickup van held drums filled with diesel. 

The ill-fated bus was en route to Islamabad from Karachi, police said, adding the accident took place as the bus was approaching Pindi Bhattian on the Faisalabad Motorway, according to Ehsan Zafar, DSP Pindi Bhattian. 

The bus carrying around 35 to 40 passengers suddenly became engulfed in flames when a diesel-filled pickup van ran into it, he said. After the collision, both vehicles caught fire, leaving at least 18 passengers killed and 15 others wounded, the police official confirmed.

The injured were transported to Pindi Bhattian and Faisalabad Hospital, said the medical superintendent.

Both drivers of the bus and van lost their lives in the mishap, while the bus was fully destroyed in the fire.  

The accident occurred near the Pindi-Bhattian Interchange at 4am, after the bus hit a pick-up van that was carrying diesel drums, District Police Officer (DPO) Dr Fahad said, adding that fire engulfed the bus shortly after the hit.

People nearby tried to pull the passengers out of the bus by breaking windows. The injured — of whom four are in critical condition — were taken to the hospital.

DPO Dr Fahad further shared that 18 bodies had been removed from the bus and will be identified through DNA testing.

It must be noted that there have been a number of such highway accidents, claiming numerous lives.

Five people, including a woman and two minors, were killed, and 20 others injured when a bus overturned in the Fazilpur area of Punjab's Rajanpur district back in July.

With the devotees of a Sufi saint aboard, the bus was on its way back to Jacobabad from Sakhi Sarwar, when it turned over after the driver lost control of the vehicle as he "fell asleep", rescue officials said.

People with severe injuries were shifted to Rajanpur district hospital, while the others were shifted to a local hospital in Fazilpur.

The July accident came days after another unfortunate tragedy in the Geeti-Das area near Babusar Top, which killed eight people and injured several others.

The tourist bus fell into a deep gorge while navigating a sharp turn on the mountainous terrain, and caught fire.

Before that, six lives were claimed in a similar accident in the Thalichi area of Diamer district on July 16.

In June, at least 12 people — including women and children — died leaving 24 others injured after a passenger bus turned turtle on the Islamabad-Lahore motorway near Kallar Kahar.

Motorway police said at that time that the bus was heading to Lahore from Rawalpindi when the accident happened.

A spokesperson of NHMP said that due to the accident, two lanes of the Lahore-Islamabad Motorway were closed, while the third one was open for traffic.