Pakistan Bus Plunges 80 Feet Into Ravine, Killing 32 in Balochistan
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jul 3
Pakistan Bus Plunges 80 Feet Into Ravine, Killing 32 in Balochistan
3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jul 3
Summary
At least 32 people died and 16 were injured after a passenger bus carrying 48 people crashed about 08:00 local time in the Dana Sar mountain range.
Preliminary reports point to a steering fault, while officials said the bus was overcrowded after taking on extra passengers from another bus that had broken down.
The bus was traveling from Quetta to Peshawar when it skidded off the road and fell 70-80 feet into a ravine on the Balochistan-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa border.
Dozens of rescuers and ambulances were sent to the scene, but rugged terrain slowed recovery efforts; the injured were taken to Zhob hospital and bodies will be returned after identification.
President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti expressed condolences, as Pakistan again confronts a pattern of deadly crashes tied to poor roads, reckless driving and weak vehicle maintenance.