TOBA TEK SINGH: At least 18 people were burnt alive, and over 20 sustai­ned burns after a bus bound for Islamabad from Karachi reportedly ran into a parked pick-up van containing drums filled with diesel on the motorway near Pindi Bhattian on Sunday, and caught fire.

Hafizabad district police officer Dr Fahad Ahmad told reporters the accident took place at 4.30am, and 17 bodies were pulled out from the bus. He said after the autopsy of the 17 bodies, samples were sent to the Punjab Forensic Science Laboratory in Lahore for DNA tests to identify them.

He added that out of 15 seriously injured travellers, four in critical condition were referred by Pindi Bhattian THQ hospital doctors to Faisalabad Allied Hospital, where one of them died. He was identified as Imtiaz Ahmad of Chak Jhumra, Faisalabad.

According to Rescue 1122 officials, women and children were also among the deceased, including a couple and their two children.

A passenger, Imdad Ali of Sukkur, told media in the Pindi Bhattian hospital that most of the passengers were asleep when the collision occurred. He recalled how fire engulfed the bus from all sides, saying that he and his friends broke the glass windows and jumped out. He said eight others had also managed to escape.

Motorway Police spokesperson Ali Imran Shah said the bus hit the van near Fateh Ka Pind, a few kilometres from Pindi Bhattian interchange on the motorway.

Motorway Police IG Sultan Ali Khawaja and DIG Mohammad Salim arrived at the accident site and oversaw the rescue operation. The IG said an additional inspector general of Motorway Police, central region, would hold an inquiry to determine the cause of the accident and fire. He said apparently it was caused due to the negligence of the bus driver. He also noted that drivers of both the bus and the pickup had been killed in the crash.

He said nine motorway officials had been suspended on account of negligence in the area of beat 17 on M-4. Those suspended include beat in charge DSP Iftikhar Ali Wainse; three inspectors Shahid Aqeel, Mazhar Islam and Hamid Raza; and five sub-inspectors Akhtar Rasool, Zahid Islam, Arsalan Khalil, Ahsan Raza and Muhammad Taqi.

A statement issued by the National Highways and Motorway Police (NHMP) said that timely action was taken, and 15 passengers were safely evacuated.

NH&MP officials were not clear about any restrictions on the movement of drums carrying fuel on the motorway.

A senior police officer said a detailed inquiry could ascertain the exact reason of the crash and fire. He explained that diesel doesn’t usually catch fire as it did in this crash. He noted that there were reports of cheap Iranian petrol being transported from Karachi to central and upper Punjab in high-deck passenger coaches, utilising their luggage space to carry plastic cans. He added that the way the bus caught fire, the possibility of petrol being present in the bus could not be ruled out.

Asif Chaudhry from Lahore and Waseem Ashraf Butt from Gujrat also contributed to this report

Published in Dawn, August 21st, 2023