At least seven people were killed and 37 others injured when a bus carrying wedding guests plunged into a rocky ravine near Quetta, the capital of Pakistan’s Balochistan province, local officials reported Thursday.
Emergency services rushed to the scene, where shocking images showed the mangled bus lying upside down in the ravine. Among the injured were several children, with some in critical condition, according to Wasim Baig, a spokesman for the provincial health department.
“This tragic incident is heartbreaking and deeply saddening,” said Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti, who ordered an immediate inquiry into the crash. “If negligence is found, action will be taken.”
The cause of the accident remains unknown, with authorities launching an investigation to determine the factors leading to the tragedy.
This incident adds to a series of recent deadly bus crashes in Pakistan. In August, two separate accidents in Balochistan and eastern Punjab province claimed 32 lives, both attributed to driver negligence. Earlier that month, 28 Pakistani pilgrims died in a bus crash in neighboring Iran while en route to Iraq.
These recurring tragedies have raised concerns about road safety standards and enforcement in Pakistan, particularly in remote areas like Balochistan.
