MUZAFFARABAD: At least 20 people were killed when a bus carrying a wedding party fell into a ravine in a remote hilly area of Azad Kashmir on Sunday, officials said.
Twenty-nine others were injured, six critically. Local authorities warned the death toll could rise.
“A bus (was) carrying around 50 people, who were going to attend a wedding ceremony, from Palandari to Hajira when it fell into a ravine,” said local police chief Hassan Qayum.
The bride and groom were not on the bus, said local senior official Ibrar Azam.
Police said the bus was carrying fifty to sixty people. Rescue teams arrived at the place of the accident and were carrying out rescue operations when this report was filed on Sunday night.
AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider offered his condolences to the families, which lost their near and dear ones in the accident. He directed the district administration of Palandari to provide free medical treatment to all injured people and give financial assistance to the families of the dead and the injured within 24 hours.
The accident took place around 108 kilometres northeast of Islamabad in the Janjal Hill area of Kashmir.
Pakistan has one of the world’s worst records for fatal traffic accidents, blamed on poor roads, badly maintained vehicles and reckless driving.
