41 killed after bus plunges off bridge in Pakistan

At least 41 people have been killed after a passenger bus fell into a ravine in Lasbela, Pakistan on Sunday morning.

A ravine is a narrow steep-sided valley that is larger than a gully and smaller than a canyon.

Hamza Anjum, Lasbela’s assistant commissioner, told Dawn, a local news site, that the bus caught fire after it crashed into the ravine.

Nearly 48 passengers were on board, he added.

“Due to speeding, the coach crashed into the pillar of a bridge while taking a U-turn near Lasbela. The vehicle subsequently careened into a ravine and then caught fire,” Dawn quoted Anjum as saying.

“It is feared that the driver may have fallen asleep,” News18, another news site, quoted the commissioner as saying.

Anjum said the bodies were charred beyond recognition, adding that DNA tests would be used to determine the identity of the remains which had been “badly mutilated”.

“We will investigate the causes of the accident,” he said.

Three people, including a child and a woman, had earlier been rescued alive. However, one of the injured persons died from injuries on the way to the hospital.

Anjum said the number of casualties could further increase to 48, adding that a rescue operation was ongoing.