Daily Times

At least seven passengers including three children died when a coach of Lahore bound Karachi Express train caught fire after mid night between Wednesday and Thursday, (April 26 to 27, 2023).

A spokesperson for the Railways said on Thursday morning that an investigation team led by Federal Government Inspector of Railways (FGIR) had left for investigation into the incident and findings would soon be shared with the media.

It is pertinent to mention here that seven passengers died when an A/C Business class coach of Lahore bound Karachi Express train caught fire near Tando Masti Khan railway station. Fire brigade teams controlled the fire at around 3:00 a.m.

The PR spokesperson informed that 4 passengers were missing after the incident and the PR police were making efforts to find them. The train was set off for its journey early in the morning after detachment of the burnt coach. The officers concerned were present at Tando Masti Khan railway station.

Pakistan Railways has constituted a team led by the Federal Government Inspector of Railways to conduct an investigation into the recent incident where a fire broke out in a business class coach of the Karachi Express.

The team is led by the Federal Government Inspector of Railways and has been dispatched to the site of the incident for a thorough investigation. Once the investigation is completed, the findings will be shared with the media.

This unfortunate event resulted in the loss of seven precious lives and caused injuries to four others in the Sindh province.

The investigation is ongoing, and the media will be updated with the findings once it is completed.

According to the details, on the night of April 26th and 27th, a fire broke out in a business class coach of the Karachi Express which was traveling from Karachi to Lahore. The train was immediately stopped near Tandu Masti Khan station. The fire brigade was alerted and the fire was controlled after about 40 minutes. Sadly, seven passengers lost their lives. One affected passenger, a 70-year-old woman, was severely injured while trying to jump from the affected coach. After detaching the affected coach, the train continued its journey to Lahore.

In October 2019, 73 people were killed and 40 injured after three bogies of a Tezgam train bound for Rawalpindi caught fire near Liaquatpur in Punjab’s Rahim Yar Khan. Then-railway minister Sheikh Rashid had said the fire was caused by a cylinder blast that occurred in the morning when some passengers were preparing their breakfast.