Babusar Pass bus accident claims 27 lives including 10 Pak Army soldiers, dozens injured

At least 27 people were killed and a dozen others were injured in a passenger bus accident on Babusar Pass in the Diamer district of Gilgit-Baltistan on Sunday morning. The ill-fated bus was going to Rawalpindi from Skardu.

10 Pak Army soldiers were also among 27 dead.

According to Diamer police spokesperson Mohammad Wakeel, the passenger bus, belonging to a private company, had departed from Skardu night earlier for Rawalpindi.

Reportedly, the driver lost control of the bus which resulted in collision against a mountain. It is not clear yet how the driver lost control of the vehicle.

Gilgit-Baltistan government spokesperson Faizullah Faraq confirmed that 12 of the 15 passengers were in critical condition and that most of the people in the accident hailed from Skardu and other Baltistan districts.

The rescue operation carried out by the Pakistan Army and the injured were shifted to Combined Military Hospital, Gilgit by armed forces’ aviation helicopters. The bodies of the dead were also taken to CMH, Gilgit, according to the military’s media wing statement.

“Pakistan Army aviation helicopters have evacuated injured to CMH Gilgit for medical treatment,” the ISPR said. The bodies, including those of the 10 soldiers who lost their lives, were also shifted to CMH Gilgit, the media’s military wing added.

The Babusar Pass road is frequently used by tourists as it remains open from the end of June to October every year. However, the road remains closed in winter season following heavy snowfall at Babusar Top.