30 killed in Pakistan bus, train collision

At least 30 people were killed and several others seriously injured when a passenger bus hit a train in Pakistan’s Sindh province on Friday.

The accident happened at Rohri area in Sukkur district when the bus was trying to cross an open unmanned railway crossing and hit the train.

Sukkur Commissioner Shafiq Ahmed Mahesar confirmed that at least 20 people died in the incident, adding that the casualties could rise as the condition of several of the injured was critical.

“We have shifted at least 60 injured people to hospitals in Rohri and Sukkur,” he said.

The accident took place at the unmanned Kandhra railway crossing, near the Rohri railway station, when the 45 Up Pakistan Express train that was coming from Rawalpindi towards Karachi collided with a passenger bus.

“The bus, carrying more than 50 passengers, was going from Sukkur to Punjab,” senior Sukkur police official Jamil Ahmed said.

“It was a horrible accident. So strong was the impact of the train hitting the bus that it was split into three parts,” he said.

The bus was dragged around 150-200 feet by the train, Ahmed said.

Rescue officials said among the victims, some died on the spot while others breathed their last while being shifted to hospitals.

Source: Agencies

Dhaka/Mukul