Thirteen Dead In Pakistan After Truck Collides With Passenger Bus

A passenger bus caught fire after a collision with a pickup truck loaded with fuel in Pakistan on December 13, killing 13 people, officials said.

The accident occurred in the southwestern province of Balochistan.

Atiqur Rahman Shahwani, the administrative chief of Qilla Saifullah district where the accident happened, told RFE/RL that a pickup truck loaded with diesel fuel collided with a passenger bus near the town of Kan Mehtarzai.

Fire broke out after the collision, Shahwani said, adding that most of the bodies are unidentifiable.

Muhammad Hashim, a paramilitary police official, said the dead include women and children.

Police said the diesel fuel transported by the pickup truck was being smuggled from neighboring Iran, a common practice due to significant price differences in the two countries.

Only one passenger in the bus managed to survive by jumping out immediately after the collision, police said.

With reporting by dpa and dawn.com