Pakistan fog fury: 14 killed, including 6 kids as truck carrying funeral party falls off bridge

Lahore/Sargodha (The Uttam Hindu): Dense fog on Saturday morning in Pakistan's Punjab province turned a happy family into mourning. At least 14 people were killed in a horrific road accident near Sargodha district. The deceased included six innocent children and five women. The accident occurred in Kot Momin area, about 200 kilometers from Lahore, where a truck went out of control and fell from a bridge into a dry canal below.

The family was going to attend the funeral

According to a spokesperson for Punjab Emergency Services (Rescue 1122), the accident is heartbreaking because the people on board the truck were members of the same family. The truck carried 23 passengers, traveling from Islamabad to Faisalabad. They had set out to attend a relative's funeral, but little did they know they would never reach their destination. Nine people were also seriously injured in the accident and have been admitted to Kot Momin Civil Hospital for treatment.

The route was changed due to the closure of the motorway

Dense fog and "zero visibility" are being cited as the primary causes of the accident. Officials stated that the main motorway was closed to traffic due to the dense fog. The truck driver was forced to take a local route. While crossing the Galapur Bridge in Kot Momin tehsil, the fog prevented the driver from seeing clearly ahead and he lost control of the vehicle. The truck broke through the railing and plunged into a dry canal below.

People ran after hearing the screams

As soon as the truck fell, there was screaming and shouting. Local people and rescue teams immediately reached the spot and started rescue work. After a lot of hard work, the dead bodies and injured were taken out from the debris. These days, fog is prevailing in Pakistan's Punjab province, due to which the risk of road accidents has increased. Police have registered a case and started investigation to find out whether it was due to some negligence of the driver or it was completely due to the weather. The administration has advised the citizens to avoid unnecessary travel during fog.