Three people died and 12 were hurt early on Thursday. A coach caught fire after hitting a motorcycle in Balochistan’s Lasbela district, officials said.
Lasbela Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) captain (rtd) Naveed Alam confirmed the casualties to Dawn.com.
The coach was going from Karachi to Quetta when the crash happened in Lasbela’s Uthal tehsil.
Police and rescue officials rushed to the site. They started rescue efforts immediately, SSP Alam said. Seven injured passengers, including children, were taken out of the vehicle.
The police broke its windows to get them out, the official said. Another five injured were rescued while the fire was being put out, he added.
The motorcycle rider died on the spot. Two other bodies were found in the coach after search operations started once the fire was out, SSP Alam said. The rescue operation finished in four hours, he added.
Alam said the cause of the fire was not known. Eyewitnesses said the crash happened because the driver was going too fast on Lasbela road.
Dr Hakeem Laasi, who is in charge of Lasbela Edhi Service, said critically injured passengers were sent to Karachi for more treatment. Edhi ambulances took them there after they got first aid.
Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfaraz Bugti ordered an investigation. He also said injured people should get medical help. He was sorry about the incident.
“Rescue operations started right away. Seven of the injured passengers went to the hospital,” read a statement on X from an official account of the government of Balochistan. “The accident happened because the driver overtook another vehicle. It caused a loss of life.”
Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi was sorry about the incident.
“Deeply shocked and sad about the loss of life in the accident,” Naqvi said in a statement on X. He said sorry to the victims’ families and prayed for the dead.
Last month, a bus fell into a ravine in Washuk, Balochistan. It killed 28 people and injured 22.
To read our blog on “PCB provides an important update on Haris Rauf’s injury in 1st Test,” click here.
