42 die as coach rams into trailer

SUKKUR: Forty-two people were killed and 27 others injured when a passenger coach rammed into a trailer on the National Highway in Sangi area near Pano Akil on Sunday.

Seven women and nine children were among the dead. The driver and seven passengers died on the spot.

The coach was going to Karachi from Dera Ghazi Khan and most of the passengers were from Dera Ghazi Khan, Multan, Kot Addu and adjoining areas.

The coach was trying to overtake the trailer when it veered out of control and smashed into the trailer, an official said.

Motorway police personnel and local people rushed to the site of the accident and started rescue work. They took the injured to Pano Akil Taluka Hospital but doctors were not there because of early morning hours. This caused the death of several people who had suffered critical injuries.

Later, Motorway police and Rangers personnel took a number of the injured to Rohri Taluka Hospital and the Sukkur Civil Hospital.

The deceased included Fida Hussain, Arsalan, Kamran, Rana Rashid, Mohammad Shahid, Ghulam Murtaza, Fahad Ali, Sajid Hussain, Arbaz Khan, Sohail Anwar, Iqra, Zul Qarnain, Mehmood, Shahid Hussain, Tayyaba, Bakhtiawar, Kausar Abid, Abid Ali, Ali Raza, Umar Farooq Lodhi, Maryam Lodhi, Hashim, Sufyan, Rehana Anjum and Farhana Bibi.

Six of them were from one family.

Twenty-three injured admitted to the civil hospital included Uzair, 7, Horeen, 6, Abdul Hadi, 7, Tabinda, Mohammad Ismail, Waseem, Mohammad Yameen, Busree, Mehboob, Shahzad, Masood, Abdul Majeed, Mohammad Amjad, Abdul Shakoor and Hafeez-Ur-Rehman. Eight teenagers and children could not be identified till late in the evening.

Doctors said that two or three of the injured were in critical condition and others were stable. They said that most of the injured might undergo orthopaedic surgery on Monday.

The coach was destroyed in the accident. The trailer was impounded and its driver was arrested by the Sangi police.

AFP adds: Several passengers were trapped inside the coach that was left badly mangled after the high-speed crash. Excavators were used to pull the trailer from the bus, as rescuers struggled to pull out the stranded passengers.

Mohammad Faisal, a police official, said: “Most of the passengers were trapped between their seats. We rescued them by cutting the coach body with metal cutters.”

Later in the day, the bodies of 28 deceased were shifted to their native towns but those of 14 victims were lying in the Pano Akil hospital and Combined Military Hospital, Pano Akil.

Compensation Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has announced compensation of Rs100,000 for the family of each deceased and Rs25,000 for each injured.

He said that a trauma centre would be set up in Sukkur at a cost of Rs4 billion, more doctors would be appointed in the civil hospital and it would get more funds for procuring medicines.

He inquired after the health of the injured and said that the provincial government would bear the expenses of their treatment.

He said that action would be taken against the doctors who failed to perform their duty. The chief minister said that about 400 doctors had been sacked for being absent from hospitals where they had been posted.

He asked the deputy commissioner of Sukkur to submit a report about the accident.

Tariq Saeed Birmani adds from Dera Ghazi Khan: The bodies of people belonging to different areas of Dera Ghazi Khan division were brought by Edhi ambulances.

Jampur was the saddest town in the region as it received 11 bodies. Other towns which received bodies included Rajanpur, Muzaffargarh and Mohammadpur.

Bus falls into ditch In another incident, a bus plunged into a ditch near Rohri while overtaking another vehicle.

Two passengers — Ayaz Ahmed and Dhani Bux, 7 — died and 25 others were injured. They were taken to Rohri Taluka Hospital and Sukkur Civil Hospital. Four of the injured are said to be in critical condition.

The bus was going to Rahim Yar Khan from Sukkur.he driver escaped and the bus was impounded by police.

No case pertaining to any of the two accidents was registered till late Sunday evening.