24 killed in Pak accident

At least 24 people, including women and children, were killed when a bus carrying them fell in a ditch in northwest Pakistan, police said The incident occurred when the bus, carrying 35 passengers, was going to Kandia from Bagru of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

"All 24 people belonging to the same tribe drowned when a bridge collapsed and the jeep they were traveling in plunged into a stream," Ahsanul Haq, the chief civil defense warden said. The incident happened because the bridge, which was in a dilapidated condition, could not bear the burden of the heavily loaded bus, Haq said.

The district police chief of Upper Kohistan Raja Abdul Saboor said: "The police and rescue teams rushed to the spot to retrieve the bodies." "It is a rugged mountainous area with no communication facilities and the people engaged in rescue activities are facing difficulties because of darkness." PTI AYZ IND AMS