MALAKAND: Fifteen people were killed after a truck plunged into a ravine along the Swat Expressway on Thursday, Rescue officials said.
According to Rescue authorities, the vehicle was carrying a group of nomads travelling from Bahrain, Swat, when it veered off the road and fell into the ravine. Eight people were injured and shifted to a nearby hospital for medical treatment.
Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Fayaz said that most of the deceased were children.
The tragic incident has once again highlighted road safety concerns in the country, where accidents are frequent due to poor infrastructure, speeding, and overloading of vehicles.
Earlier this month, seven nomads, including six family members, were killed and six others injured when a high-speed truck ran over workers sleeping on the roadside near Kuddan Hotel, Shikarpur.
According to reports, the truck, loaded with vegetables, collided with an electric pole before veering out of control and crashing into the nomads’ camp. The accident resulted in seven workers dying at the scene, while six others sustained injuries.
Police stated that the tragedy occurred due to the driver losing control of the vehicle, with initial investigations pointing to excessive speed as the cause.
The incident follows two separate accidents in Balochistan earlier the same week, which claimed at least 13 lives, including women and children, and left scores injured.
Local authorities reported that six people lost their lives and 17 others were seriously injured when a passenger coach rammed into an oncoming truck near Zero Point in Lasbela’s Uthal.
In the other incident, seven people died and 16 were hurt after a coach crashed in Hub-Winder.
Fatal road accidents are common in Pakistan, where traffic rules are rarely followed and roads in many rural areas are in poor condition.
