At least 27 people including 10 army soldiers died Sunday in a road accident in northwestern Pakistan.
According to AFP, the bus hit a rock and plunged into a ravine in Babusar Top.
The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing, said the bodies and injured have been airlifted to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) Gilgit. A statement issued by the ISPR said an Army Aviation helicopter was used to shift the injured to hospital in Pakistan Army's relief and rescue operation after the accident.
Local administration official Aurangzeb Haider told AFP four women and six children were among the dead, while senior police official Zaibullah Khan said six of the injured were in critical condition.
The accident happened in the Babusar Top area, bordering Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province with Gilgit-Baltistan.
According to police, the incident took place when the ill-fated bus going from Skardu to Rawalpindi crashed into a mountain while making a sharp turn.
According to police, the incident took place near Babusar Pass in Dia Mir District when the passenger bus crashed into a mountain while making a sharp turn ,killing dozens and injuring several passengers on board.
Police said at least 27 people including women and children were killed in the accident and at least 15 injured. The deceased and injured have been shifted to a hospital.
The police further said rescuers were having difficulty in reaching the difficult-to-access area.
Gilgit-Baltistan Spokesperson Faizullah Faraqwhile speaking to South Punjab News confirmed 27 people had been killed in the accident while 12 of the 15 passengers were in critical condition.Faizullah Firaq said that the deceased and injured, which included Pakistan Army troops, have been shifted to the district headquarters hospital in Chilas. An emergency has been declared at the DHQ hospital.
He added that the process of identifying the deceased was underway.
According to Diamer police spokesperson Mohammad Wakeel, the passenger bus, belonging to a private company, had departed from Skardu yesterday night for Rawalpindi .He said that early Sunday morning, the driver lost control of the bus and it collided against a mountain. It is not clear yet how the driver lost control of the vehicle.
An official in the DC office of Diamer, Raja Ashfaq, said that most the of deceased and injured are from Skardu.
Ashfaq said that Rescue 1122 and police teams had been dispatched to the site of the accident. Additionally, he said that a helicopter has been requested from the GB government in order to transport the bodies to Skardu following identification. Two helicopters are expected to reach shortly.
Meanwhile, GB government spokesperson Firaq said that the injured were being shifted to Gilgit in a helicopter. He expressed his gratitude with the force commander for providing a Pakistan Army helicopter for the mission, adding that an ambulance of the Army was also taking part in the rescue operation.
The Babusar Pass road, frequently used by tourists, remains open from the end of June to October every year. It then remains closed following heavy snowfall at Babusar Top.
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