14 die in Pakistan bus accident

Dawn .com :
At least 14 members of a wedding party, including women and children, were killed and 64 people were injured after a bus fell into a ravine and overturned near Kallar Kahar in Pakistan, Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper reported.
The accident reported on Sunday night was the fourth major road accident in Pakistan in less than two months.
According to rescue and police officials, 12 passengers passed away on the spot while two others expired at the hospital. The driver of the bus was also killed in the accident, the Dawn said.
The injured have been taken to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in Kallar Kahar.
Chakwal Deputy Commissioner Quratulain Malik told the Dawn that the wedding party was going back to Lahore from Islamabad.
“The vehicle was passing through a curved patch of the Islamabad-Lahore motorway when its brakes failed and the bus smashed into two cars coming from the opposite side,” she said.
“Six passengers received critical injuries and they were rushed to Rawalpindi,” the DC added.
Meanwhile, Dr Atique Ahmed, the district in charge of Rescue 1122, said a car was still stuck under the bus. “The bus was damaged to such an extent that we had to cut it to take out the injured persons and dead bodies,” he stated.
A case has been registered at the Kallar Kahar police station.
A police official said that the accident occurred on a dangerous patch of the motorway which passes through the hilly area of Salt Range near Kallar Kahar, according to the Dawn report.
“Most accidents occur on this patch as it is curvy and sloppy,” he said, adding that drivers not accustomed to Islamabad-Lahore Motorway were prone to meet fatal mishaps.
In a message after the accident was reported, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed sorrow and condoled the bereaved families of the deceased.
He also directed the authorities to provide the best medical facilities to the injured people and prayed for their speedy recovery.