Traffic Pileup Kills At Least 25 In Pakistan

Cranes and heavy trucks cleared away on Sunday the mangled and blackened wreckage of a traffic pileup in northern Pakistan which began when an overcrowded bus slammed into an oil tanker, killing several people.

There were conflicting casualty reports from Saturday’s accident on a two-lane highway near Jhelum.

Police said 25 people were killed, while rescue workers put the death toll above 50 and some news reports said as many as 65 people were killed. Authorities said the intense flames delayed efforts to count the victims.

Many of the dead were passengers in the bus which rammed into the oil tanker, which later flipped over and burst into flames after it was hit by an oncoming truck, authorities said.

Moments later, a small car and a bus packed with passengers smashed into the burning tanker. Flames engulfed the two vehicles.