KARACHI: At least six people were killed and 12 others were injured when a bus overturned and fell into a ditch near Makli in Sindh’s Thatta district on Sunday morning, rescue officials said.
According to the Edhi rescue service, the bus overturned near the Thatta Bypass, following which a rescue team reached the site of the incident and transported the injured to a hospital.
“The bodies of the six victims were initially taken to a mortuary in Orangi Town,” the service said in a statement, adding that they were later transported to Edhi’s morgue in Karachi’s Sohrab Goth.
The bus was carrying a group of picnickers from Karachi to Keenjhar Lake when it overturned while taking a sharp turn, killing six passengers and injuring dozens others, state-owned Associated Press of Pakistan reported.
“Local authorities and rescue teams were quick to respond, reaching the crash site within minutes. The injured were rushed to Karachi hospitals, with several reported to be in critical condition,” it said.
In another incident, at least one person was killed and several others, including women and children, were critically injured when a passenger bus overturned on the Gambat National Highway in Sindh’s Khairpur district.
According to APP, the incident took place while the bus was en route from Karachi to Swabi. Rescue teams, along with local police, reached the incident site and rushed the injured to nearby hospitals for medical aid.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah expressed deep sorrow over the loss of lives in the bus accidents, according to a statement issued by his spokesperson Abdul Rashid Channa.
Expressing sympathy with the Makli incident victims, he issued directives to the Thatta deputy commissioner (DC) to ensure the provision of immediate medical assistance to the injured. The chief minister further told him to immediately contact their families and fully cooperate.
Expressing sorrow over the Khairpur coach accident, CM Murad issued similar instructions to the Khairpur DC to ensure medical treatment of the wounded. He urged people to drive carefully to protect precious lives.
In a separate incident, two cousins aged 15 and 12 died in a road accident near Tooba Masjid in the vicinity of Kala Pul in Karachi, according to Edhi officials.
The bodies of the cousins were transferred to Jinnah Hospital.
Accidents are common on highways and motorways across Pakistan, caused by reckless driving, speeding, driver fatigue, and poor vehicle maintenance. Poor road conditions contribute to mishaps, while weak enforcement of traffic laws allows violations to go unchecked, worsening the situation.
Earlier this month, four people lost their lives and another six were injured — all from the same family — after their speeding car crashed into a wall next to a drain on Hawkes’ Bay Road in Karachi’s Mauripur area.
South Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Syed Asad Raza said the family was returning from the Hawke’s Bay beach, and the accident most likely happened as a result of speeding.
In an incident on July 15, a collision between a trailer and a truck left one dead and three injured near Karachi’s New Sabzi Mandi on the Super Highway.
On June 19, a speeding dumper truck overturned on a 4×4 vehicle on Rashid Minhas Road, killing a woman and an accompanying five-year-old girl.
On June 11, a young man was killed and his wife injured in an accident after an unknown vehicle hit their bike on the Super Highway. The same day, two boys were killed after a water tanker hit them near Abdullah College in North Nazimabad.
