Four children killed as school vehicle plunges into Neelum River

Four children were killed and four others injured when a vehicle carrying schoolchildren plunged into the Neelum River in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, rescue officials said on Saturday.

The jeep was travelling from Nagdar to Athmuqam when it met with an accident near Nagdar Ghoray Naka, according to rescue sources. All the children involved in the accident belonged to the same family.

The deceased included two brothers and a brother-sister pair, while the injured were taken to a local hospital for medical treatment.

Rescue teams and personnel from relevant departments reached the scene after receiving information about the accident and launched a recovery operation.

Rescuers recovered the bodies of Hassnain, 12, son of Zahoor; Zareed, son of Zahoor; Tifu, 10, son of Mashkoor; and Aleen, daughter of Mashkoor, from the river and shifted them to a local hospital.

The injured were identified as Rashida Bibi, wife of Zahoor; Mashkoor, 50, son of Zafarullah; Abdullah, nine, son of Mashkoor; and Aiman, 12, daughter of Zahoor.

Road accidents involving vehicles carrying schoolchildren have also been reported in other parts of the country.

In September, a school van caught fire after an accident near Lower Mohra Hotar in Murree, leaving 10 children and the driver with burn injuries. Some of the injured were shifted to Holy Family Hospital in Rawalpindi.

A 14-year-old girl, Ayesha, later died during treatment. Her brother, Arham, also succumbed to his injuries three days later.

In a separate accident near Sarai Saleh in Haripur, four young men were killed and two others injured when their car collided with a truck.

The four friends were returning to Haripur after attending a wedding in Abbottabad when the collision occurred, according to the supplied report.

The deceased were identified as 23-year-old Umar Mehtab, 28-year-old Shamir Javed, 19-year-old Saifur Rehman and 25-year-old Ahsan Shah. All four belonged to Darvesh Mohalla Khajuran Wala in Haripur.

Rescue 1122 teams reached the scene and shifted the bodies and injured to the Haripur Trauma Centre, where the injured received medical treatment.