A train derailed in southern Pakistan on Sunday, killing at least 30 people and injuring 100, police have confirmed.
The disaster occurred near the town of Nawabshah, in Sindh Province, when several carriages of the Hazara Express, carrying around 1,000 passengers, veered off the tracks, causing multiple cars to overturn.
At least 30 people were killed and more than 80 injured after several passenger-train cars derailed in southern Pakistan, broadcaster Geo reported https://t.co/bbkJvghj6y pic.twitter.com/mC8Pgotybi
— Reuters (@Reuters) August 6, 2023
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The Pakistani Army and Rangers have been mobilized to assist in the rescue operation, which was completed by evening.
Dozens of survivors, including women and children, were pulled from the wreckage and brought to safety, senior policy officer Abid Baloch confirmed, speaking at the scene.
“This is quite a big accident,” Railway Minister Khawaja Rafique told reporters. “There can be two reasons: first that it was a mechanical fault, or the fault was created – it might be a sabotage. We will investigate it.”
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Train accidents and derailments are frequent occurrences on the country’s aging railway system, which is around 7,500 kilometers long and carries over 80 million passengers per year.
In June 2021 at least 65 people were killed when two trains collided near the city of Daharki, and at least 75 passengers died when a fire broke out on the Tezgam Express in October 2019.