Daily Times

A passenger bus tumbled off a winding mountainous road and into a ravine in northern Pakistan on Monday, killing at least 26 people and injuring several others, a government spokesman said.

The cause of the accident was unclear, and rescue workers were still working at the scene recovering the injured and the dead and taking them to a nearby hospital, said Gilgit-Baltistan government spokesman Faizullah Faraq said.

Faraq said the bus had been headed to the town of Skardu in Gilgit-Baltistan region from Rawalpindi. He gave no further details. “All those aboard the bus including the driver of the bus were killed in the accident,” he said, adding that the ill-fated bus was unlikely to drown as the water level in River Indus was very low. A contingent of Pakistan Army also took part in relief and the rescue operation.

Meanwhile, the chief minister of Gilgit Baltistan has expressed grief over the dreadful road accident. He directed the authorities concerned to extend every possible help in the rescue operation and provision of best medical facilities to the injured.

Taking notice of the incident, Gilgit-Baltistan Governor Raja Jilal Hussain Maqpoon expressed his grief over the lives lost in the accident, adding that his thoughts and prayers were with the families of the victims during this difficult time.

Last year in September, at least 27 people, including 10 Pakistan Army soldiers, were killed and more than 15 wounded when a passenger bus rammed into a mountain in Babusar Pass as it lost control on the road. The passenger bus had been travelling from Skardu to Rawalpindi when it crashed into a mountain while making turn at Naran’s Gati Das area, killing dozens and injuring several aboard.