11 killed, 9 injured in passenger coaches collision in NW Pakistan

At least 11 people were killed and nine others injured in a road accident in Pakistan's northwestern district of Malakand on Tuesday, officials said.

Deputy Commissioner of Malakand, Syed Zafar Ali Shah, said the incident took place when two passenger coaches collided with each other and fell down to a ravine in Shaheed More area of Malakand.

"Eleven people, including five women and a child, died on the spot and nine others suffered critical injuries," the official said.

According to the official, the coaches coming from opposite directions collided head-on due to over-speeding and careless driving at a narrow road of the hilly area.

Police and rescue teams rushed to site and shifted the bodies and injured to the District Headquarters Hospital in Malakand.

Hospital officials said the death toll might further rise as five of the injured were in critical condition.

Road accidents frequently happen in Pakistan due to poorly maintained roads, violation of road safety rules and reckless driving.

According to data compiled by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, over 9,000 road accidents are reported to the police every year, killing on average around 5,000 people annually in the country.

Traffic police officials said 90 percent of the accidents in Pakistan are caused merely by human error. Endit