Pakistan Railways and police said that Allama Iqbal Express arriving from interior Sindh was involved in a deadly head-on collision with a goods’ train near Jumma Goth in Landhi killing 15 people and critically injured nearly 50. Local residents, rescue teams and fire fighters launched rescue operations at the incident of the site.

Edhi Ambulance operatives and rescue workers claimed that there were still some bodies and injured passengers trapped inside one of the carriages that was badly damaged.

Doctors at Jinnah Hospital where most of the dead bodies and injured were brought in confirmed that it had received bodies of 15 people including women and children besides nearly 50 injured, some of them in critical condition. They also feared further fatalities as some of the injured might not survive.

A senior Pakistan Railway (PR), Aftab Memon, told newsmen that from initial reports it appeared that the mishap occurred due to the negligence of the driver of Allama Iqbal Express who ignored the red signal and rammed into the goods train waiting clearance to proceed. All train services to and from Karachi were suspended and PR spokesman, Aftab Memon, claimed it would take at least four to five hours before normal services would be restored.

sidrehoo@gmail.com