41 passengers die in two fatal accidents in Pakistan

At least 41 people lost their lives in two separate bus accidents in Pakistan on Sunday, including 12 pilgrims who were en route to Iran.

The first happened when a bus carrying Shiite pilgrims returning from Iraq through Iran fell from a highway into a ravine in southwest Pakistan, killing at least 12 people and injuring 32 others, police and officials said. The driver lost control on the Makran coastal highway when the brakes failed, while passing through Lasbela district in Balochistan province, local police chief Qazi Sabir said.

Authorities in Balochistan said that arrangements were being made to send the bodies of the pilgrims to Punjab province for burial. According to Edhi rescue sources, 32 others were injured in the incident and were swiftly transported to a nearby hospital for treatment.

The ill-fated bus overturned in Lasbeela.

Rescue teams promptly arrived at the scene to retrieve the deceased and assist the injured. The deceased are said to be from Lahore and Gujranwala.

Hours later, 29 people were killed when a coaster fell into a ravine in the Kahuta district of the eastern Punjab province, police and officials said, including two women and a child.

The bus was travelling from Kahuta to Rawalpindi when it veered off the road and fell into a deep ravine in the Rawalakot region. The victims, including women and children, were transported to a public hospital in Rawalakot. Meanwhile, rescue operations are still underway to ensure no one remains trapped in the wreckage.

Sameena Khan, the head of Tehsil Headquarter Hospital in the town of Kahuta, told AFP that twenty-three bodies had been recovered from the crash site.

Rescue workers look for the victims and wounded passengers from the wreckage of a bus that fell into a ravine near Kahuta. AP

I have lost three members of my family," Tara Zafar, who travelled to the hospital after hearing about the accident, told AFP. Her father, sister and one-year-old nephew were among the dead. "I hoped that at least one of them had survived. It's doomsday for my family."

Omar Farooq, a senior government official in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, said there were no survivors.

Initially, local police said that there were seven injured, but later doctors and government officials said that everyone onboard the bus died in the crash. Raja Moazzam, a rescue official, said most of the bodies had been identified.

According to residents, the bus crash happened early on Sunday and locals initially took part in the rescue work, and ambulances of emergency service crews arrived later.

CONDOLENCES POUR IN

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif, in separate statements, offered their condolences and expressed sorrow over the two crashes. They asked authorities to ensure the provision of the best medical treatment for the injured pilgrims.

Zardari also expressed his condolences to the families of those who died in the accident, stating, "My sympathies are with the bereaved families in this hour of sorrow." He also stressed the need to speed up relief activities.

Expressing her grief over the tragedy, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz posted on X, "I am deeply saddened by the loss of 29 precious lives in the incident of the bus falling into the ditch at Kahuta. May Allah exalt the ranks of those who died in this tragedy and grant patience to their loved ones."

Road accidents with high fatalities are common in Pakistan, where safety measures are lax, driver training is poor and transport infrastructure often decrepit.

Agencies