QUETTA: At least 40 people were killed and several others injured after a passenger coach travelling from Quetta to Peshawar plunged into a deep ravine in the Dana Sar area between Zhob and Dera Ismail Khan on Friday, according to local authorities.
Police said the coach veered off the road while passing through the mountainous Dana Sar region, where steep terrain and limited access complicated rescue efforts.
Deputy Commissioner Sherani Wali Kakar said rescue teams continued to search the wreckage and evacuate survivors despite difficult conditions. Medical teams provided first aid at the scene before transferring the injured to nearby hospitals.
Officials warned that the death toll could change as rescue workers continued operations and searched for passengers believed to be trapped inside the wreckage.
Health authorities declared emergency measures at hospitals across Balochistan to ensure treatment for the injured.
Rescue 1122 said its emergency teams from Zhob reached the site shortly after receiving reports of the crash. The agency confirmed that eight injured passengers were taken to the District Headquarters Hospital in Zhob, while the bodies of those killed were first shifted to a nearby health centre before being transferred to the same hospital.
According to Rescue 1122, the coach was carrying 48 passengers when it fell approximately 70 to 80 feet into the ravine.
Sanaullah Sherani, who heads the emergency centre in Zhob, told AFP that rescue operations were initially hampered by the rocky and mountainous landscape.
Deputy Commissioner Zhob Wali Khan Kakar told Dawn that the coach departed Quetta with 36 passengers before picking up additional travellers from another bus that had broken down during the journey. An official speaking to AFP said the vehicle became overcrowded after taking on the extra passengers.
Balochistan Chief Minister ordered an investigation into the cause of the crash, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed grief over the loss of life and extended condolences to the families of the victims.
