According to reports from Pakistan’s Geo News, which cited police, a bus that caught fire early on Sunday near the Pindi Bhattian region of the country’s Punjab province left up to 16 people dead and 11 others injured. According to rescue officials, the bus carrying 35 to 40 passengers was traveling from Karachi to Islamabad, according to a report by Geo News. District Police Officer Doctor Fahad stated that the bus caught fire after colliding with a pickup van carrying diesel drums, as reported by Geo News.
Fahad said the majority of the injured passengers were in critical condition, according to Geo News. Drivers of both vehicles died, the report stated further, adding that people, who were nearby at the time of the accident, tried to pull the passengers out of the bus by breaking windows.
As Pakistan celebrated Independence Day on August 14, its Punjab province witnessed a wave of road accidents leaving 17 dead and 1,773 others injured in 1,659 traffic accidents, Dawn reported. Lahore reported the highest number of road accidents.
On August 14, Lahore’s major government hospitals witnessed an extraordinary burden on the patients who suffered injuries in road accidents.
