Chakwal: As many as eight passengers lost their lives and 18 others were injured after the bus they were travelling verred into a ditch near Balkassar Interchange in Punjab’s Chakwal district on Sunday morning.
According to a spokesperson of Chakwal Rescue 1122, the bus was heading to Lahore from Islamabad when one of its tyres burst near the Balkassar Interchange on the Islamabad-Lahore Motorway (M2).
The driver lost control of the bus, causing the vehicle to fall into a ditch and overturn. As a result, eight passengers died on the spot, while 18 others were injured, the spokesperson added.
Rescue 1122 had dispatched six rescue vehicles to the crash site, while personnel of National Highways and Motorway Police, the Chakwal police and a team of the Frontier Works Organisation also reached the incident site.
The injured were rushed to Kallar Kahar Tehsil Headquarters Hospital and Chakwal District Headquarters Hospital, where the bodies were also taken.
Rescue personnel on the site after a bus heading to Lahore from Islamabad overturned near the Balkassar Interchange on July 27, 2025. — Rescue 1122
Dr Mukhtar Sarwar Niazi, medical superintendent at Chakwal DHQ Hospital, told Dawn.com that four out of 12 injured persons brought there were “critically injured” and were being referred to Rawalpindi.
According to the Rescue 1122 statement, there were between 35-40 passengers on the bus.
As per the list issued by the rescue service, the dead included three children — aged eight months, one year and two years — and the eldest person was aged 45 years. The injured were aged between 14 and 55 years.
Chakwal District Police Officer Ahmed Mohiuddin took notice of the incident and sent a team comprising senior police officials. “The site has been cordoned off and police are acting as per law”, a spokesperson of Chakwal Police said.
Chakwal Rescue and Safety Officer Shaukat Ali said: “Our rescue teams responded with professional expertise, providing immediate medical aid to the injured and transporting the deceased to the hospital.”
He urged the public to ensure complete vehicle fitness checks — especially tyre, brake and steering system inspections — before embarking on long journeys to prevent such tragic incidents.
