KATHOR: At least 13 people were killed and several others, including six children, were injured in a devastating multi-vehicle collision involving a passenger bus and an oil tanker near Kathor on Friday. The accident caused a massive fire and brought traffic on the critical M-9 motorway to a standstill.
According to police officials, the tragedy occurred near Ansari Bridge when a speeding passenger bus, reportedly entering the road from the wrong side, collided head-on with an oil tanker traveling in the opposite direction. The force of the impact was so severe that it triggered a chain reaction, causing several other vehicles to crash.
The collision resulted in catastrophic damage. Witnesses reported that passengers sitting on the roof of a nearby passenger van were thrown off the bridge due to the force of the accident. The driver of the oil tanker died on the spot.
Emergency services were immediately dispatched to the scene. A large contingent of police, Rangers, the Frontier Works Organization (FWO), the National Highway Authority, and Motorway Police arrived to secure the area and launch a rescue operation. Rescue workers worked tirelessly to pull victims from the wreckage and extricate the bodies. After the casualties were removed, a fire brigade team sprayed water on the damaged oil tanker to mitigate the risk of further fire.
The death toll from the incident has risen to 13, with six children among the injured. They have been transferred to nearby medical facilities for treatment.
Authorities confirmed that while the oil tanker driver perished in the crash, the driver of the passenger bus, whose negligent driving is believed to be the primary cause of the accident, managed to flee the scene. “The driver of the passenger bus was going the wrong way and collided with the tanker. He has fled the scene, and efforts are underway to find him,” a police official stated.
In the aftermath of the collision, traffic flow on the M-9 Hyderabad-Karachi track was severely disrupted, with long queues of heavy vehicles stretching for kilometers as authorities worked to clear the wreckage and restore normal passage.
