A deadly road crash between an oil tanker and passenger bus in southern Karachi city of Pakistan left at least 59 passengers dead with several others wounded, said officials on Sunday.
A doctor at the Semi Jamali hospital told media, "We have received more than 59 dead bodies but the death toll may rise as most of them are completely burnt and stuck to each other." She further said that the bodies of at least six children were stuck to women who may have been their mothers, adding it was impossible to separate the remains.
"They are beyond recognition, they can only be identified by DNA test," she added.
Provincial Information Minister, Sharjeel Memon confirming the casualties told media, "The bus and all passengers were so badly burnt that we have to carry out DNA tests for identification." He further said that overloaded bus, carrying more than 60 passengers, was en route to the town of Shikarpur from the port city of Karachi when collided with an oil tanker that was coming in the wrong direction and caught fire. Due to the presence of petrol in the oil tanker, the flames were difficult to control, he added.
Earlier in November, over 58 people were killed in a bus crash in Karachi owing to the poor condition of roads.
According to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS), around 9,000 road accidents are reported to the police every year since 2011, killing over 4,500 people on average.