CHAKWAL: Seven people died while 10 others sustained serious injuries in an accident when the passenger van they were travelling in fell into a ravine on Monday.

According to sources in police and Rescue 1122, the van was on its way to Choa Saidan Shah from Chakwal and as it was passing by Ejazabad, it fell into a 100-ft deep ditch. Four passengers onboard the van died on the spot.

Bodies of the deceased and injured were taken to District Headquarters Hospital. According to the media coordinator of Rescue 1122, three passengers succumbed to their injuries at the hospital and two of the injured were referred to Rawalpindi due to their critical condition.

The deceased were identified as Nasim Akhtar, Fehmida Khanam, Nusrat Shaheen, Irshad Begum, Zakia Begum, Maratab Ali and Raja Lal Khan.

A police official told Dawn that the accident happened because the brakes of the van failed. “The road was curved at that point and there was a steep descent. As the vehicle started descending, it’s brakes did not work and it went out of the control of the driver,” he added.

The driver was identified as Mohammad Ramzan, resident of Dalwal Village whose arm got fractured in the accident.

Published in Dawn, September 22nd, 2020