KARAK - At least 14 persons including four women and two children were burnt alive and three other persons sustained injuries in a road mishap.
According to details, a Hias van was carrying a wedding party when it caught fire due to gas cylinder explosion after an accident. Within moments the van was reduced to ashes.
Police sources informed that the van was going to Teri from Sraykhwa, district Karak when it collided with a Land Cruiser (IDK 667) coming from opposite direction on Indus Highway near Nashpa area in the limits of Banda Daud Shah police station.
As a result, the van fell into a ravine and all of a sudden its gas cylinder exploded which engulfed the vehicle.
The sources informed that 14 persons including eight men, four women and two children were travelling in the van. Their bodies were beyond recognition. Three persons riding the Land Cruiser also sustained injuries and they were immediately shifted to District Headquarters Hospital Karak. The doctors stated their condition as stable.
All the deceased belonged to Sraykhwa and they were reportedly relatives and neighbours.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Sardar Mahtab Ahmad Khan has expressed deep shock and sorrow over the loss of lives in the road mishap. In a statement, the Governor expressed heartfelt sympathies with the members of the bereaved families and injured.
He also prayed for eternal peace of the departed souls and encouraged the bereaved families to bear the irreparable loss with patience.